The First Legion Series Book 2: The Argonauts
by pegasusdmac
Summary: One ship, seven heroes, and five-thousand miles of open ocean equals one epic voyage.
1. Chapter 1

1. A Busy Six Months

"Cutting it a little close aren't you, Leo?" Jason yelled up to the deck of the Argo II.

Leo looked down twenty feet to the floor of bunker 9 where Jason was standing, "Finishing touches, bro."

"She looks great." Jason smiled.

"Yeah, I know." Leo said proudly.

The Argo II was the single biggest engineering project either camp had ever undertaken. The arduous task of building the fifty feet long, twenty feet wide ship was tackled by demigods from both camps, and they didn't disappoint. The ship was a beauty. Her hull was plated with polished bronze and had sliding doors on both the starboard and port sides. Behind the doors were cannons, flame throwers, crossbows, and a variety of other projectile weapons as well as ten oars, five on either side. There were three sliding doors on the keel for the landing gear, as well. The ship had a full deck and a small elevated wheel deck at the stern, all made of solid wood. The bronze plated stern, which housed a modified jet engine, curved up like a scorpion tail and hovered over the wheel deck. The bow was triangular shaped and perched at the tip was Festus' head, shining like an eccentric hood ornament. The ship was complete with two beautifully decorated square sails hoisted on a yard. The purple foresail, the smaller of the two, was attached to the shorter foremast toward the bow of the vessel. The larger orange mainsail was attached to the tall mainmast that towered up from the center of the vessel. Atop the mainmast is where the flag would fly.

Leo was the project's foreman, and he had been engrossed in the ship's construction for the past six months. He was so focused on building the Argo II that he barely made time to eat or sleep, much less train, but there was one thing he always made time for.

"Hey Jason, heads up." Hazel said as she tossed the end of a rope ladder over the side of the ship.

"I'll see you later." she told Leo and kissed him on the cheek.

"Miss you already." Leo smiled then Hazel climbed down the ladder and joined Jason.

"So, what do you have in store for me today?" Hazel asked Jason.

"Spear training," he answered. "Kota is waiting on us at the range."

"Well, we better not keep him waiting." she said then took off running out of the bunker and Jason followed.

Training had intensified tenfold in the past six months. Campers had become trainers in their fields of expertise. Percy was a master swordsman so naturally he was the trainer in the sword arena. Reyna assisted Chiron in archery training, and Dakota was the spear and shield tactics instructor.

Jason sprinted into the range with Hazel only a few feet behind him.

"She's going to beat you one of these days." Dakota said to Jason.

"Tell me about it." Jason said trying to catch his breath.

Dakota had mellowed a bit in his six months away from the Roman camp. Camp Half-Blood was not as structured or rigid as the Roman camp, and at first Dakota had a hard time adjusting to the lack of discipline and order. After a couple of months, though, Dakota had integrated the Greeks relaxed nature with his own strict nature. He was still a tough and disciplined trainer, but he had loosened up in other aspects. He let his hair grow out a little, and he always had a few days growth of stubble on his face. All of the girls loved it.

Dakota tossed Jason and Hazel a spear. He had targets set up at distances ranging from ten to fifty yards.

"I'm tired of target practice." Hazel complained. "Can we do some combat training today?"

"Well, I don't see why not." Dakota said. "And since you're both here we can work on cooperation, you two against me."

Dakota grabbed his shield which was strapped to his back and armed himself with a spear. Hazel activated her shield, and Jason grabbed a shield from the arms pile.

Hazel immediately went on the offensive. She shuffled her feet back and forth as she approached Dakota trying to fake him. She lunged her spear toward Dakota's head. He ducked her attack and rammed her shield with his own. Jason came up behind Dakota and slashed his spear towards Dakota's knees. Dakota, still slamming shields with Hazel, stuck his spear down along the back of his leg to block Jason's strike. Hazel broke free and ran a circle around Dakota toward Jason who was now running at Dakota. Jason leaped coming down toward Dakota with the point of his spear. Dakota blocked the attack with his shield. Dakota sliced at Jason's ankles with his spear, and Jason slammed his shield to the ground to block the strike. Hazel swung her spear at Dakota's head, and he blocked with his spear. He spun a circle and sliced his spear toward her head. She did a backbend to avoid the strike, and Jason tried to decapitate Dakota with his shield. Dakota ducked then came around with the same maneuver hitting Jason's spear with his shield and breaking it in half. Hazel lunged, and Dakota blocked. She lunged again, and this time Dakota's block pushed the tip of her spear to the ground. Dakota stomped his boot on the spear and broke it. Dakota stepped back and drove the tip of his spear into the ground. He slung his shield over his shoulder strapping it to his back.

"Thanks for playing," Dakota smiled, and Hazel cursed under her breath.

"Don't worry about it, Hazel." Jason said. "You're getting a lot better."

Hazel picked a piece of her broken spear off the ground. She flipped it in her hand then threw it at the fifty yard target…bullseye.

"Maybe I should just stick with projectile engagement." she said.

Meanwhile, Percy and Grover were shooting hoops at the basketball court. Grover had been back at camp for about two months now. He had been out scouring the country for demigods, but since the gods were still silent, there wasn't much claiming going on and he had run out of leads, so he came home. When Percy was missing, Grover tried to reach him via the empathy link without success. Grover was so relieved when he got word that Percy was back at camp.

"So, I've got something to tell you." Grover said as he dribbled the basketball.

"Okay, what is it?" Percy asked.

"Promise you won't freak out."

"I won't freak out." Percy said as he guarded Grover's drive toward the basket.

"I'm getting married." Grover said.

Percy stopped in his tracks giving Grover a wide open shot which he missed. The ball ricocheted off the backboard and hit Percy in the side of the head.

"Dude, you said you wouldn't freak out." Grover complained.

"Did I hear you right? You said you're getting married?" Percy asked with a bewildered look on his face.

"That's what I said." Grover confirmed.

"For real this time?"

"Yes for real, and the thing with Polyphemus doesn't count."

Percy thought about the concept of Grover getting married. He and Juniper had been a couple for a while now, and Grover had matured a lot since his encounter with Pan. Because Grover looked like he was just a teenager, Percy sometimes forgot how much older Grover was. Grover had just turned thirty two years old.

Percy held out his hand to Grover, "Congrats, man."

Grover shook Percy's hand, "Thanks."

"What's up, guys?" Piper asked as she walked onto the basketball court.

"Grover's engaged." Percy said.

"Really? Aw…that's great. Congratulations. You and Juniper are such a cute couple." Piper cooed.

"What are you up to?" Percy asked her.

"Oh, I'm just waiting on Annabeth." she answered. "We're supposed to do some training, but Rachel just got to camp for summer break so Annabeth went to welcome her back."

"You want to shoot some hoops with us while you wait?" Grover asked her.

"Sure." she said.

Annabeth helped Rachel carry her bags to her cave.

"So, how was school this semester?" Annabeth asked Rachel.

"Horrible, same as last semester." Rachel answered. "But that's the price I pay for getting to come here."

Rachel and Annabeth had become good friends which was surprising considering the rocky start they'd gotten off to. When they first met, Annabeth felt threatened by Rachel and Percy's friendship, but Rachel saved the day on Annabeth's quest in the Labyrinth, and Annabeth returned the favor by saving Rachel from what would've been a fiery helicopter crash last summer. When Rachel became the Oracle and Annabeth and Percy became a couple, Annabeth no longer felt threatened by Rachel or her friendship with Percy, and Rachel thought Annabeth and Percy were just the cutest thing since puppies.

"How's things been here?" Rachel asked Annabeth.

"Crazy," Annabeth answered. "There have been so many kids in and out of camp in the last six months that I couldn't even tell you who is here or who is at the Roman camp. But the alliance is going good, and the Argo II should be completed by the end of the day."

"Good," Rachel nodded.

"You um…you don't happen to know…" Annabeth started.

"Who the seven are…no." Rachel said.

Annabeth shook her head, "It's getting down to the wire. Today is May thirtieth, and we still don't know who the seven are."

"Has Nico heard anything more about what's going to happen day after tomorrow?" Rachel asked.

"He hasn't been able to get any details, but he said the underworld is getting more and more restless as June first approaches." Annabeth explained.

"Has anyone heard form the gods?"

"No, they're still silent." Annabeth said.

"Well, I guess no news is good news." Rachel tried to sound optimistic, but it didn't really come out that way.

"I hope you're right," Annabeth nodded. "Well, I'll let you get settled in. I've got to go meet Piper for training. I'm glad your back, Rachel."

Rachel nodded, "It's good to see you, too Annabeth."

Annabeth was walking through the strawberry fields when someone walked up behind her.

"Hey, girl," Reyna said.

"Hey, Reyna," Annabeth smiled.

"You just missed an awesome archery class. We practiced with flaming arrows, and Jess singed Chiron's tail." Reyna laughed and Annabeth laughed, too.

"Sorry I missed it, but Rachel just got back to camp so I went to see her." Annabeth explained.

"Did she know anything?" Reyna asked hopefully.

"Unfortunately not," Annabeth sighed.

Reyna shook her head, "Something's not right. We should've heard something by now. I have a bad feeling about this."

"Me, too," Annabeth agreed.

Annabeth and Reyna had become friends in the last six months. They had a lot in common; they were both master archers and experts with a dagger. They were both highly intelligent as well. Annabeth aspired to be and architect and Reyna had plans to become a doctor. They even shared the same fatal flaw, their pride.

"Well, I don't suppose you want to come spar with me and Piper." Annabeth grinned.

Reyna raised an eyebrow, "That would be a negative."

Reyna didn't like being around Piper and the feeling was mutual. They were both struggling with Jason's indecision about who he wanted to be with. Reyna was almost so fed up with the back and forth crap that she had been thinking maybe the whole thing wasn't worth possibly losing Jason's friendship over…but then again, it could be worth everything.

"Reyna," Annabeth said. "I'm going to be brutally honest with you. I know you really like Jason, but I think you're fighting for the wrong guy."

Reyna just looked at Annabeth without saying a word.

"Just think about it." Annabeth said. "I've got to get to the arena. I'll see you at dinner."

Annabeth walked away leaving Reyna standing by the canoe lake thinking about what she meant.

At dinner that evening, everyone sat at their respective tables. There were about sixty demigods, half Greek and half Roman. Many Romans came to Camp Half-Blood to work on the Argo II, and a number Greeks went to the Roman camp to help out with the daily duties while the majority of their legion was at Camp Half-Blood. Chiron made his traditional toast to the gods and everyone placed a burnt offering into the fire. Campers ate their dinner and talked with excitement about the completion of the Argo II and the chariot race scheduled for tomorrow.

When dinner was almost over, Chiron made an announcement, "As I'm sure everyone has heard the Argo II was completed today. I want to congratulate everyone involved in the project on a job well done. Leo has informed me that the ship will be ready for a test flight tomorrow morning, so the chariot race will be pushed to three o'clock. After dinner tomorrow evening, the Apollo and Dionysus cabins have arranged a celebratory party and dance at the campfire. And, by popular demand, the day after tomorrow we will be having a friendly game of capture the flag…Greeks versus Romans."

The pavilion erupted with cheers. Everyone had wanted the contest, but there just hadn't been enough time because of the construction of the Argo II. Now that it was complete, they could be put to the real test to deem which camp was superior in action.


	2. Chapter 2

2. One Spankin' Hot War Machine

At 9 a.m., everyone gathered at the makeshift runway that was constructed at the sound. The runway ran perpendicular to the beach and ended in the ocean. The Argo II was a sailing vessel as well as a flying vessel. They were going to be traveling over a great expanse of water, and if an emergency were to arise they would need to be able to set down on the water. The runway ended in the water just incase she failed to take flight; she would just hit the water with no harm done. The Argo II taxied out of bunker 9, through a cleared section of the forest, and across camp to the runway. There were seven crewmen onboard to simulate the actual voyage. The seven man crew included Leo, who was her captain, Jason, Percy, Dakota, Nyssa, Clint, and Jake. Leo had personally asked his best friend, Jason to come along on the maiden voyage. Percy was onboard as a backup incase there was a failure in the automatic rigging system. Dakota would oversee the engine to ensure his experimental fuel compound would burn as efficiently in the ships engine as it had in the lab. Nyssa would monitor the ships electrical components, and Clint and Jake would be conducting a ship-wide check of the structural integrity of the vessel while under the stresses of flight. Leo steered the Argo II into position on the runway. The crowd of demigods gathered around the runway was cheering. A horn sounded and everyone fell silent.

Leo made an announcement, "I want to thank everyone for their hard work and dedication to this project. I couldn't have done it without your help."

Leo pressed a button on the electronics board on the wheel console. A flag began to rise up the mainmast. When it reached the top it rustled in the wind. It was a triangular, solid black flag with a red number 9 in the center in honor of the Hephaestus cabin. Everyone cheered.

Chiron held a bottle of sparkling cider in his hand and he raised it up, "May the gods see you through the first flight safely and successfully!"

Chiron threw the bottle at the hull of the Argo II, and the glass shattered on impact splattering cider on the polished bronze hull. The crowd erupted with cheers again.

The Argo II had been christened, and now it was time to see what she could do. Leo went through his preflight checklist and all systems were go.

"Firing the engine!" Leo yelled, and pressed a button on his console; the jet engine roared to life.

"Take-off in five, four, three, two, one…" Leo yelled then eased the throttle forward.

The ship lurched forward and began to race down the runway. When it was almost to the end of the runway, the sails caught the air and voila, lift. The flight plan was to fly a figure eight over camp, land out in the sound, and sail back to the beach. Targets had been set up in strategic locations around camp to test the ship's weaponry.

Jason stood on the wheel deck with Leo. Leo turned the wheel and the sails followed the command by shifting slightly. The ship turned gently to the left.

"So far, so good," Jason said to Leo.

Leo pressed a button on the console and the port side artillery doors opened.

"We're coming up on the canoe lake." Leo said.

There was a floating target set up in the center of the lake. The objective was to destroy the target using a guided Greek fire grenade. Leo checked his radar, marked his coordinates, and prepared to fire.

"Firing on my mark: three, two, one…fire in the hole!" Leo yelled as he pressed the launch button on his console.

The projectile shot out of one of the grenade launchers on the port side. The grenade whizzed through the air and hit the target which burst into green flames.

"Woo, yeah! That's what I'm talking about!" Leo yelled in excitement as he gave Jason a high five.

"Nice shot!" Percy yelled from the port side of the main deck.

Leo steered the Argo II gently to the right. He opened the starboard artillery doors as they approached the archery range. Leo pressed the crossbow button, and the crossbows automatically cocked. There were fifty crossbows behind five doors on the starboard side, ten behind each door. Each cluster of ten bows were attached to a rotating arm that spun counter clockwise. When a crossbow spun to the top of the arc it would fire an arrow.

Leo scanned the targets on his radar then yelled, "Firing first volley!"

He pressed the fire button, and a ten round volley of arrows showered down onto the archery range.

"Firing all!" Leo yelled then fired the remaining forty arrows at the archery range. The arrows fired so quickly and with so much volume that it was like firing an automatic machine gun. Arrows littered the archery range and every target had been hit.

Leo grinned, "Hazel would be so jealous."

The Argo II swooped down toward a series of targets set up between the sword fighting arena and the chariot track. Leo armed three cannons on the port side and three cannons on the starboard side. He steered the ship between the two series' of targets and programmed the target's coordinates.

"Firing, port side!" Leo yelled.

All three cannons on the port side fired celestial bronze cannonballs filled with explosive powder. The cannonballs hit the targets and exploded on impact sending shrapnel flying into surrounding targets.

Dakota came up from below deck just in time to hear Leo yell, "Firing, starboard side!"

Dakota watched as the cannonballs exploded destroying the targets.

"This thing is a beast!" Dakota yelled to Leo.

Leo laughed, "I know, right!"

Leo brought her around the last turn and set up a short final toward the sound. He pulled back on the throttle and adjusted the sails electronically like they were flaps on an airplane. Leo shut off the jet engine and coasted in.

"Here we go." Leo muttered with a bit of anxiety in his voice.

The ship slowed as it got closer and closer to the water. The Argo II was almost in a stall flying parallel to the water about ten feet off the surface. There was a jolt and thud on her hull, then another, and then she was skimming safely through the sound, a perfect landing. Leo flipped on the sonar. The final target lied at the bottom of the sound. There was a ping on his sonar screen; he had located the target.

"Arming torpedo tube one!" Leo yelled.

The three doors on the keel of the ship for the landing gear doubled as torpedo doors when the keel was submerged. The door toward the bow opened.

"Torpedo is armed. Firing!" Leo yelled as he fired the torpedo.

The sonar pinged then the pings got more frequent.

"Torpedo has acquired and is homing." Leo said as he concentrated on his sonar screen. "Impact in five, four, three, two, one…"

There was a rumble under the water then a large bubble burst at the waters surface followed by a spray of sea water that shot thirty feet into the air like a geyser. Every crewman was on the deck at this time, and they all cheered at the sight.

Leo steered the Argo II toward the beach and asked "Did everything check out?"

Clint said, "The hull is stable, and all rivets and welds are holding."

"Reinforcements on the masts, rigging, and weaponry holds are secure." Jake said.

"All electronics, generators, and battery backups are in perfect working order." Nyssa nodded.

"Fuel consumption and horsepower are consistent with the lab results." Dakota said.

"Electronic rigging works." Percy said.

Jason put his hand on Leo's shoulder, "You did it, bro."

Leo nodded to Jason.

Leo made an announcement to the crew, "Guys, let me be the first to congratulate you on a textbook flight!"

Everyone clapped their hands, applauding Leo, not themselves.

As the ship closed on the beach, Leo enabled the landing gear. When she hit the shore the wheels caught bottom, and the Argo II taxied back up the runway toward a crowd of cheering demigods. Leo parked the ship, and the crew disembarked. Hazel ran toward Leo. She squealed and flung her arms around Leo's neck. He wrapped his arms around her, picked her up off the ground, and spun her around.

Leo put her down and she gasped, "That was amazing! I'm so proud of you."

Leo smiled, "I couldn't have done it without you. You're my motivation, my confidence, my rock."

Hazel put her hands on Leo's cheeks and pulled him into a kiss; the crowd went wild.

After lunch, the buzz around camp shifted from the Argo II to the chariot race. There would be seven chariots competing in the race. The only rule was that each chariot must have one Greek rider and one Roman rider. The seven teams registered were Jason and Leo, Percy and Dakota, Annabeth and Reyna, Jess and Will, Clarisse and Jared, Travis and Alex, and Clint and Nyssa. Leo hated to bail on Jason in the big race, but he'd had enough excitement with the flight of the Argo II, and he wasn't quite ready to step into the chariot. Jason understood, and Piper quickly offered to take Leo's spot.

At three o'clock, the chariots took their positions on the starting line. When Reyna saw who was in the chariot with Jason, Annabeth could've sworn she saw steam coming out of Reyna's ears.

"We'll wipe 'em off the map." Annabeth nudged Reyna with her shoulder.

Reyna had a determined look in her eye, "You got that right."

Chariot races at Camp Half-Blood had become a betting sport since they were reinstated. Campers would bet cash, drachma, chores, and anything of value on the races. The team with the best odds of winning today was Clarisse and Jared. Clarisse always had the best odds when she raced because she almost always won. The worst odds were Jess and Will at 10:1.

The crowd was clapping their hands and stomping their feet in anticipation of the start of the race. The starting signal dropped, and the chariots took off down the track. Nyssa and Clint quickly took the lead followed closely by Percy and Dakota. In the rear of the pack Clarisse and Jared rammed their chariot into Travis and Alex. The spiked wheels on Clarisse's chariot ripped through Travis' causing it to flip. Travis and Alex were thrown free and their chariot was now a pile of splinters. Annabeth and Reyna were coming up behind Jason and Piper. Reyna had her spear at the ready.

"Patience, patience…" Annabeth told Reyna as they got closer.

They took the first turn to the inside of the track giving Reyna a perfect angle at Jason and Piper's chariot axel. She threw her spear, and it stuck in the chariot basket right between Jason and Piper. They both turned around to see Annabeth and Reyna race past them.

"You missed the axel." Annabeth said to Reyna.

"I hit where I was aiming." Reyna said.

There was a crash ahead in turn two. Will and Jess had gotten tangled up with Percy and Dakota. Both chariots hit the inside railing and broke into pieces. Annabeth and Reyna made the second turn and started lap two bearing down on Nyssa and Clint, but Clarisse and Jared were quickly closing on them. Annabeth aimed her chariot straight for the debris from the first crash. Clarisse and Jared were right behind them now.

"Hold on!" Annabeth yelled as she swerved the chariot at the very last second to miss the debris.

Clarisse didn't have time to swerve. She and Jared hit the debris and their chariot launched into the air. When it came down, it flipped and rolled across the track. Jason and Piper barely avoided hitting it. Nyssa and Clint entered turn one about ten feet ahead of Annabeth and Reyna, and Jason and Piper brought up the rear almost forty feet back. Nyssa and Clint were throwing everything they had at Annabeth and Reyna: spears, javelins, balls and chains. Reyna deflected the attacks with her javelin and shield, and Annabeth maneuvered the chariot where they were both dead even coming around turn two.

"Hyah, hyah!" Annabeth urged the horses to give it all they had.

The crowd was on their feet cheering as the two chariots crossed the finish line. It was a photo finish. They all four jumped out of their chariots and ran over to Chiron.

"Who won?" Clint asked.

Chiron raised his arms up to get the crowd to settle down, and he announced, "The winner of today's race is…Annabeth and Reyna!"

The crowd roared to life again.

"That's right." Reyna smiled and gave Annabeth a high five and a hug.

Percy and Dakota came running toward them. Percy gave Annabeth a big hug, and Dakota gave Reyna a high five.

"Good job." Dakota said.

As Jason and Piper rode by them on their chariot, Jason winked at Reyna, "Nice race."

Annabeth and Reyna walked over to the winner's platform where Chiron was waiting with the laurel wreaths.

"Congratulations on a deserving win." Chiron said as he gave them the wreaths. Annabeth and Reyna threw their arms into the air, and the crowd clapped and cheered.


	3. Chapter 3

That Dreaded Call In The Middle Of The Night

After the chariot race, everyone went to their cabins to get cleaned up for dinner and the campfire party. The campfire party was actually being considered a dance because there was going to be a band, a talented group of Apollo campers. At six o'clock, everyone at camp lined up for dinner. Everyone wore their best and best being the loosest definition of the word, but at least everyone had bathed and combed their hair. Tomorrow was June first and if Nico was right, there was no telling what was going to happen in the next twenty four hours, so they were determined to make it a great night. Dinner was an all out feast, too: grilled steak, shrimp, and chicken with baked potatoes, green beans, and hot rolls. There was even some fancy tofu dish for the vegetarians.

Chiron made his customary toast to the gods, he congratulated everyone who worked on the Argo II and the chariot race winners, and he informed everyone that curfew would be extended to eleven thirty tonight.

After the fantastic dinner, everyone walked down to the amphitheatre. The campfire flames reached ten feet into the air and burned in beautiful blues and reds. Everyone mingled as the band prepared to play their set.

Percy sat in the front row of the amphitheatre waiting on Annabeth to finish her conversation with Rachel. Percy couldn't take his eyes off her tonight; she looked absolutely amazing. She glanced over and saw him staring at her, so she gave him a wink. Dakota sat down beside Percy and noticed he was staring.

"You're a lucky guy," Dakota said.

"You could be, too," Percy said as he pointed toward Reyna who just walked into the amphitheatre. She looked amazing, as well.

Dakota shook his head, "My luck ran out, man."

Percy shrugged his shoulders, "If you say so."

"Can I have everyone's attention?" a band member announced. "We want to thank everybody for coming out, and we hope you guys enjoy the show. This first song is for all you love birds out there."

The band began playing that classic high school slow dance song, Eric Clapton's _Wonderful Tonight_.

Percy stood up and said to Dakota, "That's my queue."

Percy walked over to Annabeth and stole her away from Rachel for a dance. They were joined on the dance floor by Leo and Hazel, Grover and Juniper, Clarisse and Chris, and several others.

Dakota looked over at poor Jason who seemed like he was struggling to decide who he wanted to dance with. Dakota walked over to him and sat down beside him so he wouldn't have to make a decision.

"Kota, thank the gods," Jason said with relief.

Dakota laughed, "Can't make up your mind, huh?"

"I think I'm going crazy," Jason said.

"You've got two smokin' hot chicks that want to dance with you, and you're not dancing with either one…I think you're going crazy, too."

Jason shook his head, "Seriously, man, I like them both, but I can't spend time with either one of them without ticking off somebody. Like right now, if I were to dance with Piper, Reyna would be mad, and if I danced with Reyna, you and Piper would be mad."

"Whoa, whoa, why would I be mad?" Dakota asked him.

"Kota, I know you still care about Reyna."

"That ship has sailed, brother. As long as you take care of her and treat her right, I have no problem with it," Dakota said, though was a complete lie. Even though he and Reyna had been split up for over a year, he still couldn't stand the idea of anyone else touching her.

"It just feels like I'd be betraying our friendship," Jason told him.

"It was my decision to end mine and Reyna's relationship. I don't want you to feel like you're betraying anything."

"Are you ready to tell me what happened between you two?" Jason asked.

"Nope," Dakota said.

The band finished the song and began the next which was _Devil Went Down to Georgia._

Almost all of the girls at camp were on the floor doing some sort of line dance. Percy, Leo, and Grover joined Jason and Dakota. They all kicked back and watched the girls put on a show. Nico came over and sat with the guys.

"Hey Nico, did you just get back to camp?" Percy asked.

"Yeah, just a few minutes ago," Nico answered as he stared at the girls doing their line dance. He focused on one girl in particular, the cute redhead.

"Any news from the underworld?" Leo asked.

"Nothing new," Nico told them. Nico hated to lie to them. He had just found out that whatever was going to happen tomorrow involved the Oracle, but he didn't want to worry anyone with it tonight since they were having such a good time. Nico had resolved to keep an eye on Rachel himself, which was by no means an inconvenience.

The song and dance ended, and the girls joined the guys. The guys scooted to make room for the girls to sit down with them while the band played some rock and roll.

"Where did you learn to dance like that?" Percy asked Annabeth.

"Hazel taught us," Annabeth answered.

"We had to do something while you guys were working on the boat," Hazel said.

Dakota raised an eyebrow, "That's your idea of training?"

"Coordination and footwork," Piper smiled.

The next song the band played was a slow one. Leo grabbed Piper and pulled her out onto the dance floor. Jason seized the opportunity and asked Reyna to dance. Hazel danced with Nico, and Grover and Juniper hit the dance floor again.

Dakota turned to Percy, "Percy, do you mind if I borrow Annabeth?"

"Borrow her, man, you can keep her," Percy winked, and Annabeth punched him in the shoulder.

"Oww."

Annabeth grabbed Dakota's arm and walked onto the dance floor with him.

Percy looked over to Rachel, "Looks like it's you and me."

"You're not going to step on my toes, are you?" Rachel asked as she followed Percy onto the dance floor.

Percy laughed, "No promises."

Annabeth noticed Dakota was watching Reyna dance with Jason and she asked, "So, why'd you leave her?"

Dakota hesitated then said, "I…I didn't want to, but I had no choice."

"Someone once told me that one bad choice can ruin your whole life." Annabeth said to him.

"Better mine than hers," Dakota said.

"Dakota, there are some things we can protect the people we care about from, and there are some things that happen whether we protect them or not," Annabeth explained. "In my experience, it's better to go through the bad stuff with someone you care about than go through the good stuff alone."

Dakota and Annabeth didn't say another word; they just danced until the song was over.

The band played song after song, and the entire camp was having a blast dancing and mingling with their friends. It was like everyone got to be a normal kid for one night.

At about eleven o'clock, the band made an announcement, "It looks like everyone's having a good time tonight!"

The crowd clapped and cheered.

"Thanks, guys. Everyone grab somebody to dance with; this will be our last song tonight. It's called _I'll Stand By You._"

Jason built up his courage and finally asked Piper to dance. Piper had tried not to pressure Jason at all tonight. Contrary to what Reyna believed, Piper wasn't some crazed stalker who wouldn't let anyone near Jason. Piper respected the position Jason was in, but she also knew exactly how she felt about him, and she wasn't willing to give up on someone she cared so deeply for.

Nico walked over to Rachel.

"Hey Nico," she said.

"Do you want to dance?" he asked.

"I'd like that," she smiled.

Almost everyone was out on the dance floor when Dakota finally walked over to Reyna.

"Can I spin you around the floor a few times?" Dakota asked her.

"Well, at least I know you won't step on my toes," she smiled.

She took Dakota's hand and let him lead her onto the dance floor.

Annabeth had her arms wrapped tightly around Percy's neck when she saw Dakota and Reyna. She shot Dakota a wink and a smile and he nodded to her.

It was the perfect end to a perfect day. When the song was over everyone had about twenty minutes to say their good nights before curfew. Everyone had begun to walk back to their cabins, and Nico ran up beside Rachel.

"You got a flashlight?" he asked her.

"I know the way to my cave, Nico," she said.

Nico pulled a flashlight out of his pocket and turned it on, "I'll walk you."

Nico walked Rachel to the entrance of her cave.

"Thanks for walking me home." she smiled.

"No problem," he said. "Good night, Rachel."

"Good night," she said then walked through the curtain at the entrance and into her cave.

Nico found a large tree about ten feet to the left of the cave. He sat on the ground and leaned his back against the tree trunk. He wasn't sure if the rumors in the underworld about something happening with the Oracle were true, but he wasn't going to take any chances. It would be June first in about thirty minutes, and he was determined not to let anything happen to her. He would stay out there all night and monitor her every move tomorrow if he had to.

Nico must have dosed off at some point because he was still sitting under the tree when he woke to the sound of a voice. He listened carefully and heard a voice inside Rachel's cave. It kind of sounded like Rachel's voice, but it was different, too. Nico listened for a few more seconds then he heard a scream that was unmistakably Rachel. Nico jumped up and ran into the cave. Rachel was sitting straight up in her bed, and her eyes were glowing green. Nico had his sword drawn, but there was no one else in the cave. Rachel's eyes slowly faded to their natural shade of green, and she doubled over almost falling out of her bed. Nico dropped his sword and caught her.

"Rachel, Rachel…are you alright?" Nico asked.

"Hmm…"

"Rachel," Nico repeated.

After a few seconds, Rachel finally got her wits about her. She took a deep breath and said, "Whoa… that was different."

She looked at Nico and was surprised to see him, "Nico, what are you…ugh." She put her hands over her face.

"Oh, you're not going to be sick are you?" Nico asked.

"Maybe not," she said, her voice was muffled from her hands covering her mouth.

"What did you see?" he asked her.

"I didn't see anything, it's what I said."

"Do you remember?" he asked.

She nodded, "It's started. We have to get to the Argo II, right now."

She jumped out of bed. She threw on a light jacket over her NYU tee shirt and rolled her sweats up to her knees as she slipped her shoes on. Nico picked up his sword and sheathed it.

"Come on," she said as she ran out of the cave and Nico followed.

Hazel woke to knocking on her cabin door. She got out of bed and walked the short five feet to the door. The Hestia cabin was small compared to all the others as it was meant only as an honorary cabin, but Hazel had made the place pretty homey. She opened the door and there stood Leo. He was illuminated by the firelight from the small hearth on the front porch that always burned. He was wearing his armor, had a full pack over his shoulder, and his magical tool belt was strapped to his waist.

Hazel blinked the sleep out of her eyes, "Leo, what are you doing here? It's three thirty in the morning."

"You didn't have the dream?"

"What dream?" she asked.

"It's time, Hazel. I have to go," Leo sighed.

Hazel just shook her head and fought back the tears. Leo sat his pack down on the porch and wrapped his arms around her.

"Will you see me off?" he asked.

She nodded her head which was still buried in his shoulder. She stepped back into her cabin and slipped on a pair of sandals. She walked back out and shut the door behind her. She held Leo's hand and walked with him toward the runway.

When Percy woke from his dream of Rachel, he was so startled he almost forgot where he was. He looked at the clock and it read 3:22. He turned on the lamp sitting on his nightstand and rolled out of bed. He slipped on the blue jeans that he had left in the floor beside his bed and began the search for a clean tee shirt and a clean pair of socks. Percy wasn't exactly a neat freak. In fact, since Tyson hadn't been to camp in months, the cabin looked a bit like a tornado had blown through it. It was a wonder Percy could find anything, but he finally found a fresh pair of socks and he put them on. He couldn't find a shirt though, so the tee shirt he wore to the party last night would have to suffice. The door to his cabin swung open, and Annabeth walked in wearing her armor and a pack.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Getting dressed," he said as he put his shirt on. "What are you doing?"

Annabeth shook her head, "Waiting on you, apparently. I swear, Seaweed Brain, sometimes it takes you longer to get ready than an Aphrodite camper."

Percy smiled, "You think the boat's going to leave without us?"

"Just put your shoes on."

Percy put his sneakers on, grabbed his watch, and made sure Riptide was in his pocket. He grabbed his armor and a full pack off the adjacent bunk, and he and Annabeth walked out the door.

Jason walked out of cabin one in time to see Percy and Annabeth walk out of cabin three. Jason met them as they walked through the courtyard.

"Sleepover?" Jason grinned.

Annabeth shook her head, "Shut-up."

Jason and Percy just laughed.

"Hey guys, wait up," Piper said as she ran up behind them.

"Well, that's four," Jason said when Piper joined them.

Reyna walked out of cabin seven wearing her shining bronze armor. She had her bow and quiver strapped to her back and a full pack slung over her shoulder. As she walked by cabin five, the door opened and Dakota stepped out.

"You, too?" Reyna asked as Dakota walked up to her.

Dakota nodded then asked, "Who else?"

Reyna pointed ahead of them, and Dakota saw four campers walking out of the courtyard toward the beach, but he couldn't make out who they were in the dark.

"Are you ready for this?" he asked Reyna.

"I'm ready," she said.

When Percy, Annabeth, Jason, and Piper got to the Argo II, there were already four campers there: Leo, Hazel, Nico, and Rachel. Reyna and Dakota quickly joined the group.

"Rachel, its three thirty in the morning. Couldn't you have waited a few more hours?" Dakota yawned.

"I can't believe we're going to miss capture the flag tomorrow," Leo grumbled.

Rachel shrugged her shoulders, "Sorry guys, I don't make the rules. I'm just the messenger."

"So, who's going?" Piper asked.

"Annabeth, Dakota, Jason, Leo, Percy, Piper, and Reyna," Rachel said.

"Okay, we better get going then," Jason said.

The seven got hugs, handshakes, and well wishes from Rachel, Hazel, and Nico.

Percy shook Nico's hand and said, "Tell Chiron…"

"I'll make up something," Nico nodded and winked, and Percy smiled at the inside joke.

"All aboard," Leo said.

A door on the side of the vessel opened, and they began to board the ship.

Leo kissed Hazel then hugged her tightly, "I'm going to miss you."

"I'll miss you, too," she said still fighting back the tears. She couldn't start crying now. There would be plenty of time for that later.

"Be safe," she said.

Leo looked into Hazel's flickering auburn eyes. He was about to say goodbye when she stopped him.

"Don't say it. This is not goodbye," she said.

He nodded, and she hugged his neck.

She whispered in his ear, "I'll see you when I see you."

He kissed her forehead and said, "I'll see you when I see you."

Leo turned and walked into the Argo II; the door closed behind him. A tear rolled down Hazel's cheek. She knew this mission was more dangerous than any before it, and there was a possibility that Leo wouldn't be coming home, but she also knew they would be together again, in this world or the next.

Hazel, Rachel, and Nico stepped away from the ship. The engine fired up, and the headlamps on the bow shined down the runway. The ship eased forward and was soon speeding down the runway. When it neared the end of the runway, it lifted into the air and quickly disappeared into the night sky.


	4. Chapter 4

4. The Lost City Is Found

Leo stood at the wheel of the Argo II as it flew east into the sunrise. Piper and Annabeth leaned against the railing on the bow and looked out across the great expanse of sky and ocean ahead of them. Percy and Jason sat on the deck with their backs leaned against the mainmast as Percy taught Jason to tie a variety of boating knots. Reyna leaned her arms on the port side railing near the stern trying her best to fight off the motion sickness. Dakota walked up the steps from below the deck and put his sunglasses on when he emerged onto the deck. It had been a quiet morning so far. They had been flying for hours without event.

Dakota walked across the deck and leaned back against the railing beside Reyna.

"You're turning green," he said.

She kept her eyes focused on the horizon, "I really don't like flying."

"Here," Dakota said as he pulled an individual pill packet out of his pocket.

"What is it?"

"Dramamine, it will help with the nausea."

"You know I can't take that. It makes me too drowsy."

"Would you rather get sick in front of your BFF over there?" he asked looking toward Piper.

Reyna hesitated then said, "Give me that."

Reyna grabbed the medicine out of Dakota's hand.

"Go below deck and try to rest," he told her.

Reyna walked across the deck and down the steps. Jason watched as she went below deck.

"I'll be back in a minute," Jason told Percy.

Jason stood up and walked across the deck. He went down the steps, walked through the cargo hold and into the sleeping quarters. There were four bunk beds in the small sleeping quarters. Reyna was lying on the bottom bunk of the bed that was positioned against the right wall. There were no windows in the room, and the only light came from a small lamp mounted to the wall beside the door. Reyna lay on her side facing the wall, and Jason sat down next to her. He put his hand on her forehead and she turned to look at him.

"Hey," she said.

"Are you going to be okay?" Jason asked her.

"Yeah, I'm just a little airsick."

"Is there anything I can do?"

"I just took some medicine so I should be feeling better soon."

"Okay, try to sleep. I'll check on you later."

"Thanks, Jason."

Jason walked out of the room and closed the door behind him. He walked back out onto the deck and Piper met him at the top of the steps.

"How's she doing?" Piper asked Jason.

"She's airsick, but she's resting now. I didn't think you liked Reyna."

"She's not my favorite person, but I don't want her to be sick."

Jason smiled at Piper, and Piper asked, "What?"

Jason shook his head, "Nothing."

Reyna's dream began immediately after she fell asleep. The dream was chaotic and didn't make any sense. She saw flashes of different places and different faces, some things she recognized and some things she didn't. She saw the faces of familiar and unfamiliar people, the faces of the gods, and the faces of the dead. She saw creepy landscapes and horrifying monsters. Her dream made random jumps from past to present to future. Everything she saw was so jumbled together that she couldn't focus on anything in particular. Suddenly she saw an enormous flash of fire that was so vivid she could feel the heat from the flames. A terrifying face appeared in the flames; it was the face of a giant. The giant spoke in her head:_ I am Ephialtes, and I will be your greatest adversary._

Reyna woke to the sound of a blaring siren, and the lamp mounted by the door was flashing red. She jumped out of her bunk, threw on her armor, and ran up to the deck.

"What's happening?" she yelled to Leo.

"We've got incoming," he yelled to her.

Reyna ran over to Leo and looked at the radar screen on the control board. There were three blips on the radar closing in on their position. Reyna looked toward the horizon and could barely make out three black dots in the sky.

"There they are," Piper said pointing at the dots on the horizon.

"Are they planes?" Percy asked.

"I don't think so. I'm not picking up an equipment signature," Leo said.

As the flying objects approached, Leo readied the weapons systems and opened the artillery doors on both the starboard and port sides of the Argo II. They began hear a familiar roaring as the objects got closer. Leo grabbed a pair of binoculars from his console and looked through the lenses toward the objects.

"Not good," Leo said.

"What are they?" Jason asked.

The objects roared again, and Leo didn't have answer Jason's question.

"Dragons," Dakota said.

"Battle stations!" Leo yelled.

Leo stayed at the helm while Percy, Annabeth, and Reyna covered the starboard side and Jason, Piper, and Dakota covered the port side.

Within seconds the dragons were clearly visible. They were solid black with glowing blue eyes. They were about twenty feet long from their snout to the tip of the tail and had a fifteen foot wingspan. The lead dragon swooped toward the deck and breathed fire toward them. Everyone raised their shields and ducked for cover. When the other two dragons flanked the starboard and port sides, Leo fired a volley of arrows from the rotating crossbows. When the arrows hit the dragons it sounded like bb's hitting a tin can.

"They're metal," Leo muttered to himself.

The dragons turned behind them and came around for another pass.

"Take cover!" Jason yelled.

All three dragons roared and swooped down toward the deck. Two of the dragons breathed fire onto the deck and the other one used its razor sharp claws to rip the foresail. The sails were made of a super strong carbon fiber and Kevlar blended material that should've been resistant to anything short of a nuclear blast, but whatever that dragon's claws were made of was strong and sharp enough to rip a gaping hole in the sail. The Argo II began to lose altitude.

"They're automations!" Leo yelled.

"Hephaestus?" Percy asked.

"I don't think so. I've never seen this kind of design."

Annabeth looked to Percy and said, "I have."

Annabeth ran to the helm and grabbed the binoculars. Leo fired a round of grenades as the dragons flew by. The dragons were covered in Greek fire, but it didn't affect them. Annabeth glassed the dragons until she saw what she was looking for. On the top of each dragon's head there was a symbol etched in blue, a Greek delta, the mark of Daedalus.

"We have to deactivate them," Annabeth said.

"How?" Leo asked her.

"A demigod's touch to the symbol on their heads will reset their program, then we simply give them new orders."

"That sounds anything but simple."

"Will it work?" Dakota asked.

"I think so," she said.

"That's reassuring," Leo grumbled.

"It's good enough for me," Dakota said and took off running toward the mainmast.

The Argo II was still losing altitude due to the damaged foresail, so Leo increased the throttle to keep her from dipping any lower. The dragons made another pass and Leo kept firing at them. Reyna and Annabeth stood at the bow and fired arrows at the dragons as they flew by. Jason, Piper and Percy slashed their swords at the dragons as they passed low over the deck, and Dakota was climbing up the mainmast toward the flag. A dragon swooped down the port side, and its wing caught the hull. The wing ripped a ten foot long gash in the bronze plating of the hull. A warning buzzer on Leo's console alarmed and the ship again began to lose altitude. Dakota had reached the top of the mainmast, the highest point of the ship, when Annabeth, still firing her arrows, swung her bow around and noticed him.

"What's he doing?" she asked Reyna.

Reyna looked up at Dakota as he was eyeing an incoming dragon.

Reyna's eyes got wide and she said, "He's going to _tripudio_."

"_Tripudio_?" Annabeth asked.

"Jump!" Reyna answered as Dakota leaped off the mainmast of the ship landing on the back of the passing dragon.

Dakota held on as the dragon thrashed and spun trying to knock him off. Dakota pounded on the dragon with his shield and held on tightly as he tried to make his way toward the dragons head. The dragon swooped below the keel of the ship and disappeared from sight. The other two dragons were heading straight for the ship, one flying toward the starboard hull, the other toward the port hull. Percy was standing at the starboard railing with a dragon bearing down on him. Jason was in the same situation on the port side. When the dragons had almost reached them, they each took off running toward the opposite side the ship. Leo was able to muster some acceleration to increase the ships altitude just enough for the dragons to pass under the ship instead of hitting it. When Jason reached the starboard railing, still in a dead run, he stepped onto the rail and leaped over the edge. Percy did the same, simultaneously, on the other side of the ship. They each landed on a dragon as it emerged from under the ship. They both struggled to hold on as the dragons twisted and turned in flight. The dragons snapped their teeth and breathed fire to try to shake loose of their riders. They began to fly back east and the Argo II followed in pursuit. Soon Leo lost sight of them and within seconds they had disappeared from radar, too.

"I've lost them," Leo said.

"You what?" Piper asked with a bit of panic.

"Are they out of range or did they go down?" Reyna asked more calmly than Piper.

"They weren't out of range," Leo said knowing down was the only other option.

"Is there an island near where they disappeared?" Piper asked Leo.

"Not according to the charts."

"Leo, just fly low and we'll keep an eye out for wreckage," Annabeth said.

"That won't be a problem. At the rate we're losing altitude, we'll have to put down in a few miles anyway."

Jason and Percy were clinging to the dragons for dear life, but they were able to inch closer to the dragons heads. The dragons tried everything to shake them loose, even skimming across the surface of the ocean which only gave Percy more power. Percy was soon able to make it to the dragons head. He touched the delta, and it began to glow bright blue. The dragon instantly stopped its death roll maneuvers and flew straight, slow, and steady.

Percy said to the dragon, "You are now under my command, begin activation."

The dragon hissed, and Percy interpreted that to mean _understood._

Jason's dragon was still flying erratically when Jason finally made his way to its head. Jason touched the symbol and gave the dragon the order. The dragon steadied its flight and joined Percy.

"Woo, that was an adrenalin rush!" Jason yelled to Percy.

"That was awesome!" Percy yelled back.

Jason noticed an island ahead, "Hey, Percy, look."

"Do you think Dakota could be down there?" Percy asked.

"Only one way to find out."

They steered their dragons toward the island, and when they got close they were astonished by what they saw. The island was an enormous city surrounded by farmland and grazing pastures. The city was a network of roads that cut through towering skyscrapers and monumental buildings all made of stone. There were enormous aqueducts and elegant bridges that spanned flowing creeks. There was a wind farm on one side of the island that had at least a hundred modern wind turbines spinning in the breeze. A lake in on the north side of the island was created by a dam that looked like a smaller version of the Hoover dam. Jason and Percy circled the island until they saw an airstrip with a row of hangars along side of it. At the end of the airstrip was a black dragon.

"There," Percy pointed to the airstrip.

Percy and Jason steered in to land. The dragons flapped their wings like a bird landing on a tree and softly touched down at the end of the runway. They dismounted the dragons and told them to stay. They looked around and Dakota emerged from one of the hangars.

"Kota," Jason said, relieved to see him safe.

"Hey, guys," Dakota said as he walked over to them.

"Where are we?" Percy asked.

"I don't know," Dakota said. "Where's the ship?"

They all turned to the west and looked at the sky. A dot was visible in the sky.

"There she comes," Jason said and at that moment alarms began blaring.

"That can't be good," Percy said.

They heard voices coming toward them then saw what looked like troops closing on their location.

"What now?" Jason asked.

"The ship is damaged. It can't take another assault," Percy said.

"Then we'll just have to escort her in," Dakota said.

They mounted their dragons and flew toward the Argo II. When they reached her, she was losing altitude fast. They circled the ship, and Jason took lthe ead by positioning his dragon in front of the ship. Leo steered the Argo II to follow. As they approached the island they began to hear arms fire. Projectiles were being fired from ballista on the shore of the island. Percy and Dakota steered their dragons toward the weapons. They swooped down and their dragons breathed fire on the attacking troops. Leo set up a short final toward the airstrip and followed Jason down for a smooth landing. Percy and Dakota circled the runway a few times to ensure there was no immediate danger before they landed. Annabeth, Leo, Piper, and Reyna disembarked the ship and joined Percy, Jason, and Dakota on the ground.

"Is everyone alright?" Jason asked.

Everyone nodded.

"What is this place?" Piper asked.

"It wasn't on any of my charts. This island isn't supposed to exist," Leo said.

"That's never a good sign," Percy said.

They heard yelling voices closing in on them, so they drew their weapons. Soon they were surrounded by an army of troops with their weapons drawn. The troops stopped charging when they reached within twenty feet of them. The troops fell silent as a man emerged from the group and walked toward the demigods. He was a middle aged man with gray hair. He wore a black uniform that resembled a pilot's jumpsuit. He didn't take caution as he approached even though he was unarmed. When he got within six feet of the demigods he stopped.

"And who might you be?" he asked them.

No one seemed quite sure how to answer the question.

Leo finally said, "We're half-bloods on a quest."

"How did you reprogram our dragons?" the man asked.

"They bear the mark of Daedalus," Annabeth said.

"You know Daedalus?"

"Knew…he's dead. He was my brother," Annabeth said.

"My condolences, young lady, he was a fine man. We'd not seen him in a few years and feared he may be dead."

"How did you know him?"

"He was one of the founders of this city. He is responsible for most of our technological advances and for keeping the city hidden from the outside world."

"Where are we? What is this place?" Leo asked.

"Where are my manners? I am Creon, the leader of this great city…the city of Atlantis."


	5. Chapter 5

5. Vanishing Act

They had all been to some fascinating places on quests in the past, so they weren't at all surprised to learn that this was the legendary lost city of Atlantis. Annabeth was dreamy eyed. The legend of Atlantis had always intrigued her in the same way the Labyrinth had: the architecture, the inventions, and the mystery surrounding it.

Creon waved his hand in the air and the troops disbursed.

He looked upon the Argo II and said, "That is a fine vessel."

"She took some damage in the attack," Leo said.

"I see that," Creon said to Leo. "You are a son of Hephaestus, yes?"

Leo nodded, "Leo Valdez."

Creon shook Leo's hand and said, "Leo, I will have some of our blacksmiths assist you with repairs. We use a unique metal here called orichalcum. It is what the dragons are built from. The metal is nearly indestructible."

"I noticed."

"Why would you help us?" Reyna asked.

"I understand your suspicions young demigod," Creon said. "But I know the importance of this quest you are on and the consequences of unfulfilled prophecy, so we offer our help. Besides, any friend of Daedalus is a friend of Atlantis. Come; let me give you a tour of our city."

"Guys, I'm going to pass on the tour. I'll go ahead and start on the repairs," Leo said.

"Yeah, I'll stay and help him," Dakota said.

"Very well," Creon said. "I will send help immediately, and have one of our chefs bring you lunch."

Leo and Dakota nodded and the rest of them followed Creon toward the city.

Dakota looked over to Leo and asked, "Couldn't leave her unguarded, huh?"

"Its not that I don't trust him, but…"

"Well, I don't trust him."

Creon led them into the city and began describing its history, architecture, and technology. Annabeth listened intently and asked about a million questions, some of which Creon didn't have an answer for. He explained how the city was self-sustaining and had no need for anything in the outside world. They had electricity, running water, and communications systems, and they'd had these for over two thousand years. He explained that the island was not actually an island. It was a floating apparatus that could be steered, and that is how the city has been able to stay hidden for over two millennia.

Several blacksmiths arrived at the Argo II with a motorized flatbed trailer that carried huge panels of sheet metal, cutting torches, and welders, as well as a roll of fabric to patch the sail with. They immediately began repairing the gaping hole in the hull. The blacksmiths were skilled and quick. They had the first patch fitted and tacked within thirty minutes. Leo was at the steering console programming an alarm system and emergency takeoff sequence to a remote control he carried in his pocket. Dakota was on the deck near the bow helping repair the torn foresail. A young woman walked up the ramp onto the deck. She was probably in her early twenties. She was short and thin, had platinum blonde hair, and wore a white uniform. She held a picnic basket in her hand and walked toward Leo.

"Are you boys hungry?" she asked Leo.

"Famished," Leo said as he looked up from the console.

She smiled and said, "Well, I brought lunch."

She handed the picnic basket to Leo and said, "Enjoy."

"Um…thanks," Leo said and she walked back down the ramp and off the ship.

"It was nice to meet you," Leo muttered to himself.

Dakota walked over to Leo and sat beside him on the deck step. There were sandwiches, chips, and drinks in the basket.

"How are the repairs going?" Leo asked Dakota.

"Almost finished, what have you been working on?"

Leo finished chewing his food then said, "I setup the alarm system and emergency takeoff sequence."

"Alarm system?"

"Once I arm it, if anyone other than the seven of us boards the ship, alarms will blare and the controls will lock."

"Nice," Dakota nodded.

They finished their lunch while the blacksmiths finished the repairs to the Argo II. The patchwork was seamless, and the Argo II was ready to get back underway.

"Let's go find the guys," Leo said.

They walked down the ramp and onto the ground. Leo pressed a button on his remote. The ramp door closed and the ship beeped like a car alarm arming. They walked toward the city to find the rest of the crew.

Creon was giving the other five a tour of the palace. Annabeth recognized some of the inventions and architecture from the notes Daedalus had given her in his laptop. She told Creon about how much information Daedalus had given her on that computer and how she hadn't had time to examine it all. She regretted that she didn't have it with her because the ideas and information could be useful to the Atlantians considering the majority of their daily lives revolve around technology that Daedalus had given them. Annabeth was able to remember some notes and conveyed to Creon things that could be improved upon. Creon seemed fascinated by Annabeth's intelligence; he knew it must run in the family.

Dakota and Leo joined the others in the palace just as Creon arranged for them to be escorted to sleeping quarters upstairs. They'd had a long day and Creon insisted they stay the night so everyone could get some much needed rest. They would each get their own room with its own bathroom.

"Why don't you kids go on upstairs and rest for a while," Creon said. "Take a hot shower and put on some fresh clothes. Dinner will be served in a few hours. I will have someone come get you when it is time to eat."

An older gentleman escorted them upstairs. There were several rooms down a long hallway.

"Here you are," the man said pointing down the hall.

They each chose a room and walked in. The rooms were elegant and very modern even though the palace itself looked like it was every bit of a thousand years old. In Annabeth's room there was a sofa in the corner and a coffee table in front of it. On the table was a leather bound book that looked like an old address book. On the book's cover the word VISITORS was burned into the leather. She sat on the sofa and opened the book. The pages had yellowed with age and were becoming frail. The book was simply a collection of signatures and dates. When she started reading the names, she recognized many of them: Hercules, Odysseus, Perseus, Jason. Annabeth guessed that it was the signatures of people who had visited this city. Annabeth turned to the page with the last signature. The last name listed was Kristin, dated May 1984. Annabeth grabbed the pen lying on the table. She signed her name in the book, and dated it.

A few hours had passed when the old man came back upstairs and knocked on of each of their doors. He informed them that dinner was being served, and they followed him down to the dining room. There were eight seats at the table. Creon sat at the head of the table and they filled the rest of the seats. Servers brought out drinks and plates of food.

"So, Creon," Piper started. "That's an interesting name. I think I've heard it before."

"Oh, I'm sure you have my dear. Creon was the name of one of my great ancestors. He was the ruler of Thebes during the conflict known as the Seven Against Thebes. You know, seven is an important number in history and in prophecy. You seven are just the latest in a long line of legendary seven's."

"So you know about the great prophecy?" Annabeth asked.

"Yes, we have a seer here on Atlantis. We heard the prophecy months ago, although, I will say it is surprising that it's upon us so quickly. The last great prophecy took seventy years to come to pass."

"The Titan War," Jason said.

"I'm correct to assume you all had a hand in winning that war?"

"Most of us," Percy nodded.

"Like most of history's legendary heroes, you have to fight more than one battle to be remembered," Creon said. "I have no doubt your names will echo across the centuries."

They finished their dinner and thanked Creon for his hospitality. They were walking up the stairs to go to their rooms when Creon walked over to the bottom of the staircase.

"Annabeth," Creon said.

Annabeth and Percy both stopped and turned around.

"Can I speak to you for a moment?" Creon asked.

Percy looked at Annabeth with apprehension.

"It's okay," she told Percy. "I'll be up in a minute."

"Okay," Percy said then continued upstairs.

Annabeth walked back down the stairs and joined Creon in the parlor.

"Annabeth," Creon started. "I have spoken to some of the city leaders, and we would like to invite you to stay here on Atlantis."

Annabeth was so stunned at the offer that she didn't know what to say.

"We need someone with your intelligence and knowledge of Daedalus' inventions."

"I can't stay here, Creon," she said. "I was called to go on this quest, to be a part of the prophecy; I can't neglect that, and I can't leave my friends."

"You could be a great leader here, Annabeth. The city would be yours to enhance and improve, to do with as you please. You could be our new Daedalus."

"I'm not Daedalus and as tempting as the offer might be, I have to decline. I'm sorry."

Creon nodded, "Sleep on it, Annabeth. The offer will still stand in the morning."

She nodded to Creon then walked up the stairs. Percy was standing at her door.

"What was that about?" he asked her.

"He wants me to stay here," she answered.

"Forever?"

"Yeah, he thinks I would make a good city leader."

"What did you say?"

"Percy. Of course I told him no, but he told me to think about it."

"Do you want to stay?"

"No, I mean the architect side of me is tempted, but I can't stay here."

"You're right; you can't because you'd miss me too much," Percy smiled.

"Don't you mean _you_ would miss _me_ too much?" Annabeth smiled and pointed to herself.

"That too. Get some rest. I'll see you in the morning," Percy told her.

Percy kissed her cheek and she walked into her room. She lay on her bed and thought about what Creon said. She knew there was no way she could stay, no matter how enticing it sounded. Annabeth finally fell asleep, and when she did, she dreamed of rain. She was standing at the ruins of Athena's temple, the Parthenon, in the pouring rain. Thunder boomed and the ground shook beneath her feet. She was drenched and shivering when she saw something approaching: it was a giant. When the giant reached the ruins he pointed his spear at Annabeth and spoke in her mind:_ You cannot outsmart Enceladus, daughter of Athena._

Annabeth woke to a man grabbing her out of bed and cupping his hand over her mouth. She struggled and tried to scream, but her scream was muffled by the hand over her mouth. The man wore a soldier's uniform, and she noticed there was another soldier keeping watch at the door.

"I've got her. Let's get her to the brig," the soldier whispered to the other.

She continued to struggle, and it took both soldiers to carry her. They carried her out of the palace and into the empty street. It was the middle of the night, and a light rain was falling. They carried her through the streets until they came to a stone building with no markings or street number. They carried her through the door and down a long dark hallway. They tossed her into a room and closed the door. The room was small with no furniture or windows. The lighting was dim, but she could see a man was standing in the room with her. It was Creon.

"I'm sorry, my dear," Creon said. "But I couldn't take no for an answer."

"So you kidnapped me?" Annabeth snapped.

"I can't let you leave. We need your knowledge of Daedalus' machines."

"I don't even know that much about them."

Creon nodded, "You know enough."

"My friends won't leave without me."

"They will have no choice. In the morning, my troops will force them to leave."

Annabeth started to come at Creon, but he pulled a weapon that looked like a pistol and pointed it at her. She stopped.

"Don't," he said sternly. "You will stay here until you're friends have gone, then you can join our society."

He kept the weapon pointed at her as he backed out the door and closed it behind him.

Annabeth cursed in ancient Greek then sat down on the floor. As soon as she sat down she got a huge grin on her face. She reached to her back pocket and pulled out her Yankees cap. She had forgotten it was even in her pocket, and the soldiers probably didn't think anything of it; it was just a baseball cap. She put the cap on and disappeared. She walked over to the door and it wasn't locked. She cracked it open just enough to see out. The two soldiers that kidnapped her were standing guard in the hallway. The door they came in was the only exit. She watched the soldiers intently, waiting on them to look toward the other end of the hallway. When they finally looked away, she squeezed out the door and gently closed it behind her. She crept down the hall toward the exit. When she reached the soldiers, she patiently waited for the right time to squeeze past them without the risk of brushing up against either one of them. She finally made it past them and reached the exit. She twisted the door knob and opened the door slightly. When she did the hinges creaked…busted. The soldiers were startled by the noise and ran toward her. She burst out the door and ran through the street. She ducked into an ally and watched as the soldiers stood outside the building looking completely bewildered. When the soldiers went back inside, she headed for the only place on Atlantis where she would be safe, the Argo II.

At 7 a.m., an alarm clock in each of the demigod's rooms sounded. Everyone got up and around and met in the hallway at about the same time, everyone, that is, except Annabeth. Annabeth was usually the first one out the door, not the last.

Percy knocked on Annabeth's door, "Annabeth…hey, Annabeth."

There was no answer.

"Annabeth!"

There was still no answer. Percy opened the door and walked into the room. She wasn't there. He checked the bathroom, and she wasn't there either. Percy noticed the blanket from the bed was on the floor, and a glass of water on the nightstand had been knocked over.

Jason walked into the room, "Is she not here?"

Percy shook his head. Jason looked the blanket and glass. It was clear there had been a struggle.

"It looks like someone grabbed her," Jason said.

"_Vlacas_," Percy muttered.

"What?" Jason asked.

"Creon, he took her."

"Why?"

"Last night he asked Annabeth to stay here on Atlantis, and she told him no."

"But do you really think he would kidnap her?"

Dakota was standing in the doorway and said, "If he's desperate to keep her here he would."

"Guys, we have to find her," Percy said in desperation.

"We'll find her," Jason reassured him.

They walked downstairs and a group of about a dozen armed soldiers were standing in the parlor waiting on them.

"What's all this?" Reyna asked the soldiers.

"We are here to escort you to your ship," one of the soldiers said.

"We know the way. We don't need an escort."

"Creon's orders."

"Where is Creon?" Percy asked. "One of our crewmates is missing."

"Not our concern," the soldier said coldly. "Let's go."

They walked out of the palace with the soldiers into a steady rain.

Jason whispered to them, "Rendezvous at the north side of the city."

Everyone nodded.

"Go!" Jason yelled and all six of them took off running in different directions. The soldiers split up and followed in pursuit.

The city was big with many streets and ally ways. Each demigod was easily able to shake their pursuers. They searched the city for at least an hour in the pouring rain with no luck. Dakota was headed to the rendezvous point when he saw two soldiers talking in an ally. Dakota eves dropped and heard them saying something about the girl disappearing. Dakota knew they had to be talking about Annabeth. Dakota met up with the others on the north side of town.

"Annabeth escaped," Dakota told them.

"What?" Percy asked.

"I overheard some soldiers saying she disappeared."

"Her Yankees cap," Leo said.

"If she escaped, then where did she go?" Piper asked.

"The only place she could go," Dakota answered.

"The ship," Percy said. "You'd better be right, Dakota."

"If she's as smart as I know she is, that's where she'll be."

They snuck through the city heading for the airstrip. When they got close enough to see the Argo II, they noticed it was surrounded by troops. The heavy rain hindered the visibility of the troops, so the demigods were able ease down to one of the hangars along the airstrip without being seen.

"What now?" Reyna asked.

"We need a diversion," Jason said.

Leo pulled the remote control out of his pocket and pointed it toward the ship. He pressed a button and the jet engine roared to life. The troops standing near the stern were blown back thirty feet, and the rest of the troops were startled. The demigods transformed their various magical items into their weapons and made a break for the ship. As they were running toward the Argo II, the artillery doors on the ship began to open. The troops had regrouped and began to charge the demigods. Suddenly, there was a loud blast from the ship. The demigods raised their shields as Greek fire grenades rained down on the troops.

"Way to go, Annabeth!" Leo yelled.

The boarding ramp on the Argo II began to lower and the demigods took off running toward it. They ran up the ramp and it immediately began to retract to avoid any pursuit. Leo ran to the controls, pushed the throttle forward, and the ship began to race down the runway.

"Annabeth!" Percy yelled.

He felt a touch on his arm, and she materialized in front of him.

"Right here," she said.

He hugged her and asked, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she answered. "Let's just get the heck out of here."

And as she said that, the Argo II lifted off the ground and resumed it's course east in the driving rain.


	6. Chapter 6

6. Things Get Kraken

Everyone was on deck wearing their raingear and trying not to fall down due to the terrible turbulence caused by the storm. The rain was pouring down, lightning was flashing all around them, and the wind was gusting at nearly twenty five knots. It was everything Leo could do to keep the ship in the air. Piper stumbled up to the wheel deck and grabbed Leo to steady herself.

"Leo, the storm is just getting worse. We can't keep this up. It's too risky," she said.

"We're already past the point of no return. Our only option would be to put down and sail over water, but the seas are going to be just as rough."

"That would be better than crashing into the sea."

Leo thought about it for a second then yelled, "Percy!"

Percy made his way to the wheel deck and asked, "What's up?"

"It's getting to dangerous to fly. I'm going to set her down. You're a better sailor than me…"

Percy put his hand on Leo's shoulder, "We'll work together. Let's put this beast on the water."

Leo made a slow decent toward the oceans surface where the winds were gale force. When he saw the water, he knew it was going to be a rough landing. Setting the Argo II down in thirty foot seas with forty five knot winds wasn't going to be easy. He steered the ship as parallel to the water as he could. He tried to keep the bow elevated. He knew if the bow hit the water first, she would do a nosedive and capsize.

When he was a few feet from touching down, he yelled, "Brace for impact!"

The ship hit the waves with so much force it knocked everyone to the deck. A thirty foot wave crashed over the bow sending hundreds of gallons of water rushing toward them. Percy, still lying on the deck, held out his hand and took control of the water diverting it around them and off the deck. The ship rocked violently in the waves as they pounded against the hull. Percy got to his feet and stumbled over to the helm. Leo was still at the wheel.

"Out of the frying pan and into the fire!" Leo yelled.

"Shorten the sails and engage the propeller, we've got to get her out of this broach!" Percy yelled to Leo.

Leo followed the order by pressing the electronic controls on the console, and the ship began to steady.

"Put the hammer down, Leo! We'll run before the gale!" Percy yelled.

"Won't the following sea break too dangerously in the quarter wave?"

"Not if you run fast enough, and it will give you more helm control! The ship will be easier to manage in the trough!"

Leo pushed the throttle forward, and the engine turned the propeller at full speed. The ship rocked up and down as she broke over the waves, but at least now she was no longer lurching to the starboard and port.

Leo and Percy rotated at the helm because of the strain the storm put on the helmsman. After about two hours, the storm began to ease. The seas had dropped to fifteen feet and the winds were down to twenty knots. The rain was still steady, but wasn't driving like it had been. Leo was able to decrease the props acceleration and still maintain control of the vessel. Leo turned on the bilge, and it began to pump out all the water that the ship had taken on. After another hour of sailing, the rain had decreased to sprinkles, the seas had dropped another five feet, and the wind was down to seventeen knots. Percy was at the helm sailing the Argo II straight and steady when there was a loud THUD on the keel that gave the ship a jolt.

"What the…" Percy muttered as he checked the instruments. He tried to turn on the sonar, but it wouldn't work.

In a few seconds, there was another, more violent, hit to the keel.

Leo ran up from below deck and yelled to Percy, "Did we run aground?"

"There's no way. We're too shallow in the draft."

Leo ran to the helm and tried to turn on the sonar. It still wasn't working.

"Piece of crap," Leo said in frustration.

"Try the battery backup," Percy suggested.

Leo hit the battery switch, and the sonar screen lit up and began pinging wildly.

"Oh my gods, what is that?" Leo said looking at the gigantic image on the sonar screen.

Before Percy could even respond, there was a hard hit to the keel on the port side, and the ship began to lurch to the starboard sending the crew tumbling across the deck toward the starboard rail. When the ship snapped back level, the crew went tumbling again.

"What's happening?" Annabeth asked as she got to her feet.

The ship took another hit and everyone fell to the deck again. Four enormous tentacles the size of school busses emerged from the water and began to snake their way up the hull toward the deck on the port side.

Percy looked over the port side railing and gasped, "Holy Poseidon!"

Percy stumbled back as the tentacles crept across the port side railing and lashed to the deck with the rows of suction cups on their underside.

"What is that?" Reyna yelled.

"Giant squid?" Leo guessed.

"Giant octopus?" Piper asked.

A portion of the beast's body emerged from the water off the port bow. It was a gigantic pink and brown blob with an enormous eye in the center.

Dakota and Jason saw the beast, looked at each other, then simultaneously yelled, "The Kraken!"

Leo took off toward the helm leaping over tentacles as he ran. Everyone drew their weapons and began slashing the tentacles. The Kraken roared and began to tilt the ship to port. Leo got to the helm and opened the artillery doors on the port side. He armed the cannons and fired a volley of cannonballs. The cannonballs exploded on impact with the tentacles and ripped apart two of them. The Kraken whaled in agony and released the ship. The beast submerged then rammed the keel of the vessel as it made its way to the starboard side. Four more tentacles rose forty feet out of the ocean and came crashing down across the deck of the Argo II. Everyone dove for cover. The ship rocked violently upon the impact and warning buzzers began blaring at the helm. Leo tried to open the artillery doors on the starboard side, but they were jammed shut.

"Shoot it, Leo!" Piper yelled as she stabbed at a tentacle with her dagger.

"I can't. The doors are jammed shut!"

"Great," she muttered.

The Krakens body began to emerge from the water again. Reyna drew her bow and began firing arrows at the beast's eye which only made it mad. It began to rock the ship with the tentacles that were lashed across the deck. Everyone began to stumble and fall due to the rocking of the ship. Two more tentacles emerged on the port side of the ship and lashed to the hull.

"It's going to try to pull us down!" Jason yelled.

Leo fired a volley of arrows out the port side artillery doors sticking the tentacles like a pin cushion. One of the two tentacles submerged while the other crept up to the deck. Piper, who was near the bow, began running toward the stern jumping tentacles as she went. She grabbed Percy as she ran by him.

"Come on," she told him.

He followed her and asked, "Where are we going?"

"I have a plan. Follow me."

Percy followed Piper across the deck, down below deck, and through the cargo hold. Piper grabbed a sword off a shelf in the armory as they passed through and strapped it to her waist as they ran toward the engine room at the stern of the ship. Right before they got to the engine room, Piper made a hard left into a launch bay where two big yellow and black jet skis sat on a launch platform.

"Sweet!" Percy said.

They each hopped on a jet ski. Piper grabbed the life vest that was lying across the handlebars and began strapping it on. Percy grabbed the life vest off his handlebars and threw it behind him.

"I don't need that," he said.

Piper fastened the last buckle on her vest then pressed a red button on the launch platform. The bay door in front of them, which was a door on the starboard hull, began to open revealing the ocean creeping by ten feet below.

Piper looked at Percy, "You ready?"

"Rock and roll."

They fired the engines on the jet skis and Piper pressed the launch button. The launcher shot forward sending them flying out of the ship. They sailed through the air, hit the waves, and went under. A second later, both jet skis shot out of a wave and hit the surface at full throttle. They steered toward the Kraken at full speed. Piper flanked left and drew her sword. Percy flanked right and pulled Riptide from his pocket. They slashed the Kraken's body as they sped by. They circled around the beast slashing it with their swords. On the ship, Jason, Dakota, and Annabeth were hacking at the tentacles, Reyna was still firing arrows towards the eye, and Leo was at the helm steering the ship back and forth trying to break free from the Kraken's grip. Piper maneuvered between tentacles and sliced and diced as she rode by. Percy jumped waves and stabbed at the beast as he came down. Leo armed a torpedo and prepared to fire at the Kraken, but Piper and Percy were in the line of fire. The Kraken removed one of it's tentacles from the deck of the Argo II and began swinging it wildly at Piper and Percy. They used evasive maneuvers to avoid the swings. They would speed under it as it swung through the air and use the wake to jump it as it hit the water. The Kraken removed another tentacle from the ship and swung at Piper. It caught her off guard and brushed her almost knocking her off her jet ski. Leo saw what happened and decided that was enough.

"Jason, Dakota!" Leo yelled.

They both looked at Leo.

"Get them back onboard!"

Jason and Dakota each grabbed a rope and tied it to the aft starboard rail where there was no tentacle. Once they tied them securely, they tossed the other end overboard. The ropes barely reached the waters surface. They yelled at Piper and Percy until they finally got their attention and pointed at the ropes. Percy sped around the Kraken giving it a blow with his sword then came around behind the Argo II. Percy steered his jet ski alongside the starboard hull and grabbed a rope when he reached it. His jet ski sped out from under him, and Dakota began to haul him up. Piper wasn't far behind. She had almost reached the rope when a tentacle broke the surface of the water beneath her. She screamed as it knocked her from her jet ski.

"Man overboard!" Jason yelled.

Leo killed the engine, but a boat that big doesn't stop on a dime and soon Piper would be out of reach. Dakota had just pulled Percy over the rail as Jason cut Percy's rope. Jason handed Percy one end of the rope and held onto the other.

"Tie that off further aft, fast!" Jason told Percy.

Jason took off running toward the stern and Percy followed. Once Percy was near the stern, he hastily began tying the rope to the rail. Jason ran up the wheel deck and when he reached the very end of the ship he stepped onto the rail and leaped overboard. Jason held onto the rope as he swung along side the starboard hull. The timing was perfect. When Jason reached the water Piper was right there. He grabbed her as he swung by and the momentum in rope propelled them up toward the railing. They both grabbed the rail, and Percy and Dakota hauled them onto the deck.

"Are you okay?" Jason asked Piper.

She coughed and said, "I'm fine, thanks to you."

When Leo saw that Piper and Percy were safely back onboard, he marked his coordinates and prepared to fire a torpedo at the Kraken.

"Fire!" Leo yelled as he launched the torpedo.

The torpedo zipped through the water and hit the beast. The Kraken roared with pain and the tentacles that were lashed to the deck rose into the air then quickly disappeared under the surface of the water. Leo tracked the Kraken on the sonar as it made a quick decent to the ocean floor.

"You did it, Leo!" Percy yelled, but about that time the stern of the Argo II began to drift violently to the starboard.

"Oh, no!" Annabeth yelled.

"What now?" Leo asked as the tried to correct the ships heading.

They looked over the rail and saw a giant whirlpool forming.

"We'll get sucked down!" Reyna yelled.

"I have to go down stairs." Dakota said.

"What? You're going down stairs?" Reyna asked him.

Dakota took off running down below deck. Leo had the ship's throttle all the way down and was trying desperately to steer out of the whirlpool, but it was useless. They were caught in the spinning vortex and were quickly being pulled down. Dakota made it to the engine room and began prepping the rocket booster. It was experimental and hadn't been tested. It would either shoot them into the sky or blast them to bits, but right now it was their only option. When Dakota completed the rocket's setup he pressed the com button in the engine room.

"Leo," Dakota said through the com link.

"Go ahead," Leo answered.

"Start the rocket booster firing sequence."

"Seriously?" Leo asked with surprise.

"Do it!"

Leo began the sequence and Dakota ran back up to the deck.

"Everyone below!" Dakota yelled as he stood at the steps that led below deck.

Everyone ran below deck and into the cargo hold except Leo.

"Come on, Leo!" Dakota yelled.

"Sequence configured, countdown ten seconds, engage," Leo said then pressed a button on the console. The timer began counting down from ten. Leo ran toward Dakota and they both ran below deck. They entered the cargo hold and closed the blast door behind them.

Leo checked his watch, "Three, two, one…"

There was a loud hissing sound toward the stern and the ship began to shake.

"Grab onto something!" Dakota yelled.

There was a loud boom, and the Argo II shot out of the whirlpool and into the sky.


	7. Chapter 7

7. Going Green

Rachel walked around the arts and crafts room observing her students painting their favorite landscape on their canvas. When Rachel was at camp, she taught painting and sculpting classes. She was a brilliant artist herself and loved teaching the classes. She liked to feel useful around camp other than just being the Oracle. She was a bit distracted today though, as she had been since the Argo II left camp four days ago. She'd had nightmares of strange and terrifying places and monsters every night since they left. She hated knowing that her friends were traveling toward such horrible things.

Rachel walked over to Hazel and looked at the painting she was working on. It was a harvest moon rising over a cotton field with boles so white they looked like snow.

"That's beautiful, Hazel," Rachel said.

"That's Texas, that's home," Hazel told her.

Rachel didn't know Hazel very well. Most of the six months that Hazel had been at Camp Half-Blood, Rachel had been at boarding school. Rachel had spent some time with her and the other girls during the week she was at camp over spring break, but she didn't really get to know her. Rachel didn't have to know Hazel to tell she missed Leo fiercely. Hazel and Leo were the first official Roman/Greek couple at camp and most likely the first in a hundred and fifty years. Their relationship had become an inspiration to those who doubted the Romans and Greeks could work together.

When class ended, everyone headed to the dining pavilion for lunch. There were only about forty campers sitting at the various tables, and most of the campers were Greek. In the last four days, most of the Romans had gone back to their camp, and many of the Greeks that had been at the Roman camp came back to Camp Half-Blood. A number of Greek campers had also elected to go home to their families for a while since they had been at camp for six straight months. It was unusual for so few campers to be there during the summer, but the low numbers were only going to be short term as all of the Greeks had plans to return to camp before the summer solstice in seventeen days.

After lunch, Rachel headed to the Pegasus stables to give Blackjack a couple of the sugar cubes that she didn't put in her coffee this morning. He happily ate the sugar cubes and she rubbed his face.

"Don't worry about Percy," she told him. "He'll be fine. He's pretty resourceful, you know?"

Blackjack nuzzled her hand either in agreement or soliciting more sugar cubes.

"You've got him spoiled," said a voice behind Rachel.

She turned to see Grover standing behind her.

"He was already spoiled," Rachel smiled.

Rachel gave Blackjack a final pat on the neck then walked with Grover toward the cabins.

"Grover, I'm really sorry you didn't get to say goodbye to Percy and Annabeth. I know they are your best friends," Rachel said sympathetically.

"You do realize they may not come back," Grover said with a bit of aggravation.

"I should have come and got you as soon as I knew they were leaving."

"Yes, you should have."

They walked through camp quietly until Grover finally said, "You look tired."

"I haven't been sleeping well, and I've been having headaches."

"Nightmares, too?" Grover asked.

Rachel nodded.

"Why don't you go try to get some rest before dinner," Grover told her.

"Yeah, I probably should."

Grover began to walk away and Rachel called after him, "Hey Grover, I really am sorry."

He turned to her and said, "I know."

Rachel walked to her cave and lied down in her bed. It took a little while, but she finally fell asleep. The nightmare began the same as it had every time she had slept in the past four days. She was standing in a vast wasteland of darkness. The ground was black and the sky was so dark it almost seemed like a ceiling. The warm breeze was thick and musty, and the air was charged with a feeling of despair. In the distance, was an army of monsters preparing to charge into battle, and behind her, fire rose from the ground as far as the eye could see. Suddenly, Rachel was hit with a cold shot of wind that took her breath away. The wind carried with it a chilling voice that said: _you will bare witness to the end of all things._

Rachel woke and sat up in bed trying to catch her breath. A tear rolled down her cheek.

"Knock, knock," said a voice outside her cave.

The voice startled her, but she recognized who it was.

"Yeah," she said with a crack in her voice.

Nico stuck his head through the curtain door, then walked into the cave. He noticed Rachel had tears in her eyes as he walked toward her.

"What's wrong?" Nico asked her.

Rachel buried her face in her hands and began to sob. Nico sat down on the edge of the bed beside her, and she leaned her head against his shoulder. He put his arm around her in an attempt to comfort her, but she continued to cry.

"Shh, shh, don't cry," Nico said. "You're okay; everything's going to be okay."

She began to shake her head knowing nothing was okay. Nico sat quietly as Rachel cried on his shoulder for several minutes. He knew she'd been having nightmares, but she didn't want to talk about them with anyone. He assumed they must be bad if they were able to scare her to tears. Rachel began to regain her composure, and she wiped the tears from her face.

"You must think I'm a big baby," she said to Nico.

"I don't think that. You're scared and worried; I get it. I've been there."

Rachel nodded remembering that Nico had dealt with some pretty horrible things himself, from the death of his sister to the Titan War and the more recent unrest in the Underworld.

"Tell me about your dreams," Nico said.

Rachel hesitated, then began to get out of her bed, "I'll show you."

She walked over to a nook in her cave where she kept her art supplies and Nico followed. There were two easels covered by a single cloth sheet.

"I painted what I've been seeing in my nightmares," she said as she removed the sheet.

The painting on the left depicted the black wasteland with the army of monsters and the land of fire. The painting on the right was different. The landscape was dark like in the other painting, but scene was entirely different. A river of black flowed to the left, in the distance was the image of a black fortress behind a fog of thick smoke, and to the right was an enormous fire shooting out of a hole in the ground the size of a city block.

What little color Nico had immediately drained from his face.

"Do you know where this is?" Nico asked her pointing at the paintings.

"I can only guess it's where the Argo II is heading."

Nico shook his head, "No, this is not Greece. It's the Underworld."

"What?"

Nico pointed at the painting on the left, "This dark expanse of land is the Asphodel Fields, the army of monsters is lined at the edge of the Fields of Punishment, and the fire…the fire is burning Elysium."

"No," Rachel gasped.

"Now, in this one," Nico said pointing to the other painting. "The fortress is my father's palace, this black river is the Styx, and the fire is rising from the pit of Tartarus."

"I had no idea," Rachel said.

"I have to get down there."

Rachel grabbed Nico's arm, "It's too dangerous to go alone. Where is your father?"

"I don't know. He has gone silent like the other gods. I haven't seen him in months. I have to go, Rachel. It's my responsibility."

"It's Hades' responsibility."

"I've got to help. I can't let this happen. The Underworld is one of the most important divisions of the world. If it crashes down, hell will be unleashed on earth."

"You can't save the Underworld on your own."

"What would you have me do, Rachel?" Nico snapped in agrivation.

With that question, Rachel's eyes began to glow serpent green. She looked straight at Nico and began to speak in the tripled voice of the Oracle:

"_Your journey begins in sixteen days, __as the earth nears its summer phase._

_Four will go down and three will return, __when the bottomless pit awakens then burns._

_To ensure the seven win their fight, __the upheaval beneath must be made right._

_The hunter, the seer, and the fire must join your quest, __to secure the_ _persevering attempts of the rest."_

Rachel's eyes faded back to normal and she began to collapse. Nico caught her and helped her to a chair.

She sat down and said, "I don't know if I'll ever get used to that."

"Are you okay?" Nico asked as he knelt next to the chair.

"I'm fine," Rachel nodded. "What did I say?"

"I think you just gave me a quest."

Nico told her what she had said as the Oracle, and she thought about the riddle for a moment.

"Well, sixteen days from now would be the day before the solstice," Rachel said.

"The summer phase," Nico nodded.

"Four will go down; I guess that means three others will go with you."

"The hunter, the seer and the fire," Nico nodded. "The hunter has to be Thalia, and Rachel, you're the seer."

"Oh, no, I can't go on this quest. I'm not like you. I'm just a mortal."

"Odysseus was mortal, so was Jason, and they are two of the greatest heroes in history. Just because you are a mortal doesn't mean you can't be a hero."

Rachel shook her head in denial, "No, no it can't mean me, and what about the fire? Wouldn't that be Leo? He's the only Hephaestus camper with power over fire."

"There is someone else here with that power."

Rachel thought for a second then said, "Hazel."

"Looks like you, me, Thalia, and Hazel will be heading to the Underworld in sixteen days to make sure Percy and the gang won't be fighting for nothing."

"Great," Rachel said sarcastically.

"We'd better go tell Hazel."

Nico and Rachel walked to Hazel's cabin and knocked on the door. There was no answer. They asked around if anyone had seen her and a camper told them to try the beach. They walked to the beach and there Hazel was sitting in the sand watching the waves roll onto the beach.

"Hazel," Rachel said as she and Nico approached.

Hazel turned and saw them, "Oh, hey guys." Hazel stood up and brushed the sand off of her shorts. "What's up?"

"Hazel, how many quests have you been on?" Nico asked.

"A few, why?"

"Well, the Oracle just called for you to go on another one."

Hazel looked at Rachel, and Rachel nodded. They explained to Hazel about Rachel's nightmares and told her what Rachel had said as the Oracle.

"If it will help Leo and the rest of them, I'm in," Hazel said.

"Alright, now we have to find a way to get in touch with Thalia," Nico said.

"We could send her an Iris message," Hazel suggested.

"And if that doesn't work, I could try the message in a dream thing again." Rachel said.

"Should we tell Chiron?" Hazel asked.

"Not yet, it's still several days away and we don't need the camp going into panic mode. Let's just keep this quiet for now," Nico said.

"We have two weeks to prepare," Hazel said. "I suggest we get in as much training as we can during that time."

Nico nodded in agreement, "But first things first, we've got to contact Thalia."


	8. Chapter 8

8. Shipwrecked In Paradise

Percy dreamed he was standing on black obsidian sand on the shore of a black river. He recognized the place all too well; it was the River Styx. Percy looked down at the black water. Debris swirled in the current and faces of the dead reflected on the waters surface. Percy saw Beckendorf, Selena, Bianca, Zoë, Luke, and other friends he had lost over the years. Their faces were anguished and Percy could sense their despair. He knew something was wrong. These guys were heroes who should be at peace in Elysium. The water rippled and a different face appeared. It was the horrible face of the giant Polybotes. The giant spoke in Percy's mind: _I am not dead, Percy Jackson, and soon, I will have my revenge._

Percy opened his eyes. His heart raced, his head throbbed, and he was drenched in a cold sweat. He sat up in bed and gained his composure. He moved to the edge of the bed and put his feet on the floor; it was ice cold. A chill went up Percy's spine as he realized he was no longer onboard the Argo II, but in a surprisingly familiar place. Percy looked around to see Jason, Dakota, and Leo sleeping on three other beds in the room. He walked across the room and through a silk curtain into another room. The ceiling glittered in a rainbow of colors and a fire crackled in the fireplace. Percy could smell the dried herbs hanging from the ceiling. When he looked in the mirror, he was not at all surprised to see he was no longer wearing his jeans and tee shirt, but had on instead a white cotton tee and sweats. Percy peaked through another silk curtain to see three beds where Annabeth, Piper, and Reyna were sleeping. Percy walked outside into a green meadow and turned to the right. He walked toward the flower garden where he knew she would be and sure enough, the natural beauty was knelt down working in her garden. As he walked toward her he noticed that she hadn't changed a bit. She still wore her caramel hair in braids, and she sparkled in her white sleeveless dress. He walked up beside her; she looked up at him and smiled.

Percy smiled and said, "Hi, Calypso."

"Percy," she said as she stood up and gave him a hug. "It's so good to see you."

"It's good to see you, too. It's been a long time."

"How long has it been?" she asked.

"Two years."

"I never expected to see you again. When your ship appeared on my beach, you could imagine my shock when I saw you and Jason in the cargo hold."

"Wait a second, you know Jason?" Percy asked with surprise.

"Yes, he has visited Ogygia. You didn't know that?"

Percy shook his head, "No, he never told me."

"I washed up on her beach four years ago," said a voice from behind Percy.

"Jason," Calypso said excitedly and ran to him.

She hugged his neck, and he kissed her forehead.

"I thought you only had visitors once in a thousand years," Percy said.

"I bet a couple of years could feel like a thousand here," Jason said.

"Because time moves differently here," Percy said.

Calypso nodded.

"I was here for two weeks, and it felt like I was here for over a year," Jason said.

"I was here for two weeks, too, but it only felt like a couple of days to me," Percy said.

"I guess it's different for everyone," Calypso said.

Jason stared at Calypso. He remembered her as a cute thirteen year old, but now she was a gorgeous seventeen year old. He'd washed up on her beach while he was stranded in the Sea of Monsters after slaying the Trojan Sea Monster, and she nursed him back to health. The time he'd spent with her on Ogygia had been the best of his life. They would work in the garden together and take long walks along the beach. She taught him how to cook, and he taught her how to play gin rummy with a homemade deck of cards. They would sometimes stay up all night looking at the stars then watch the sunrise over the horizon. He and Calypso became close friends, and she was, no doubt, his first love. Leaving her was the hardest thing he'd ever done, harder even than the battle on Mount Tam. Seeing her now brought it all back, the good times and the heartache.

"I still can't believe you're both here," Calypso said. "No one has ever found Ogygia twice, and for both of you to return…the Fates must have intervened. They can be so cruel."

Jason and Percy both knew how difficult this reunion must be for Calypso, and it wasn't easy for them either. They could feel her pulling away as she had before and neither one of them could blame her because they knew as she did that they would be leaving her again.

Percy, attempting to lighten the mood, said, "I planted a garden in Manhattan like I promised. The moonlace has really grown."

Calypso's eyes began to twinkle, and she began to relax.

She smiled and said, "That's wonderful, Percy."

Calypso's eyes broke away and she stared into the meadow. Percy and Jason turned to see what she was looking at; it was Annabeth walking toward them. Percy took a deep breath preparing himself for how awkward this introduction would be.

Annabeth walked up beside Percy and gently grabbed his arm, "What's going on, Percy?"

Annabeth looked at Calypso and the wheels began turning in her brain. She already had a good idea where they were and who Calypso was.

"Is this…" Calypso started.

"Annabeth," Percy nodded then turned to Annabeth, "This is Calypso."

The awkward silence lasted longer than Percy had hoped, and Jason was beginning to feel uneasy about the situation, as well. It was like no one really knew what to say. Percy could only imagine how the girls were feeling. Calypso applied some blame to Annabeth for Percy leaving Ogygia two years ago. Percy had mentioned Annabeth several times during his stay, and she had gotten the feeling that Annabeth was very important to him. Annabeth, however, split the blame equally between Calypso and Percy for letting her think Percy was dead when he was actually on a two week vacation.

Finally Calypso said to Annabeth, "Percy spoke of you often while he was here."

Annabeth wanted to be hateful and tell Calypso that Percy never mentioned her, but she bit her tongue.

Instead she looked at Percy and asked, "Can I talk to you for a second?"

Annabeth began to drag Percy away and he said to Calypso and Jason, "Excuse us."

Calypso turned to Jason, "His girlfriend?"

"Yeah," Jason nodded.

"Is one of those other girls your girlfriend?"

"Not exactly."

Annabeth pulled Percy halfway across the meadow before she finally stopped and said, "Calypso…again?"

"Annabeth."

"This is unbelievable," Annabeth said in frustration. "What are we even doing here?"

"You act like this is my fault. Your guess is as good as mine."

"How long have we been here? Did she say?"

"Time moves differently here," Percy said as he looked behind Annabeth. "But from the look of Dakota's face, I'd say a couple of days."

"What about my face?" Dakota asked as he walked up to them.

"Dude, you've almost got a beard," Percy said to him.

Dakota rubbed his chin, "You're just jealous you can't grow one. Oh, and by the way, where are we?"

"Ogygia," Annabeth answered.

"Calypso's island?"

Percy and Annabeth nodded.

"Where's Jason?" Dakota asked almost in a panic, and Percy pointed toward the garden.

Leo, Piper, and Reyna walked out of the cave into the meadow.

Piper looked around at the landscape in awe, "It's so beautiful."

"Yeah, beautiful places usually mean trouble," Reyna said.

Leo looked toward the beach and saw the Argo II resting at the shoreline.

"There's the ship. She made it," he said happily. "I'm going to go look her over, see if she took any damage."

"I'll come with you," Reyna said quickly and walked with Leo toward the beach.

Piper looked out into the meadow and saw Percy, Annabeth, and Dakota in the distance. She glanced to her right toward the flower garden and saw Jason talking to an unfamiliar girl. Piper walked toward the garden. Jason and the girl were laughing when Piper walked up to them and her presence startled them a bit.

"Piper," Jason said with surprise. "You're awake."

"Yep."

Calypso held out her hand to Piper and said, "Hello, Piper, I'm Calypso."

Piper shook her hand and said, "Calypso, really?"

"Jason was just catching me up on all of his latest adventures," Calypso explained.

"You two know each other?" Piper asked.

"Oh, yes, but sadly we haven't seen one another in several years," Calypso said. "So, are you Jason's _not exactly_ girlfriend?"

Piper and Jason both blushed and Jason quickly tried to change the subject, "Um, Piper, is Leo awake?"

"Yeah, he and Reyna went to the ship to check for damage."

"Hey, guys," Dakota interrupted as he ran up to them.

"Kota," Jason said with relief in his voice.

"I think Percy and Annabeth need to talk to you and Piper," Dakota said and winked at Jason.

Percy and Annabeth didn't actually need to talk to them, but Dakota had to make up something to rescue Jason from the situation. Dakota knew all about Jason's stay on Calypso's island four years ago. Jason had confided in Dakota about his relationship with Calypso and how very tempted he was to stay here forever. Dakota never really understood why Jason didn't want to leave until now. The place was a paradise and there was something about it that denied the urge to leave.

"Well, go on. I'll keep Calypso company," Dakota said.

"It was nice to meet you," Piper said to Calypso.

"And you, as well," Calypso smiled.

Jason and Piper turned and walked into the meadow, and Calypso's smile quickly faded. She turned to Dakota; this was the first time he had looked her in the eye, and he was instantly mesmerized by her striking beauty. He knew he was staring, but he couldn't help it. He finally blinked a few times to bring himself out of the daze.

"Kota, is it?" Calypso asked.

"Dakota. Only two people call me Kota, and you're not one of them."

"Don't you like it?" she asked.

"Yeah…I like it."

Calypso smiled, "Jason always spoke so fondly of you."

"Don't ask him to stay this time, Calypso. Don't make him deny you twice, because I don't know if he could. I don't know that any man could."

Calypso looked a Dakota sadly and nodded.

"Okay, now that we got that out of the way," Dakota said. "You have any food on this island?"

Calypso smiled and giggled, "Of course, come on."

She and Dakota walked toward the cave entrance where everyone else had already gathered. Reyna and Leo were introduced to Calypso as she escorted them into a room in the cave with a dinner table. Everyone sat down and the invisible servers brought food and drinks: vegetable soup, sandwiches, and iced tea. Everyone sat quietly eating their meal.

"What's with the awkward silence?" Piper said finally.

"I guess everyone's just really hungry," Dakota said.

Piper was suspicious and asked, "No, really, what's going on?"

"Well, Piper," Annabeth started. "Apparently there are a couple of guys at this table that didn't have to be introduced to Calypso because they already knew her and have been here before."

"Oh yeah, who?" Leo asked.

Annabeth cut her gaze toward Percy, and he just nodded his head as he continued to eat.

"Who else?" Leo asked as he, Piper, and Reyna looked toward Dakota.

"Not me," Dakota said.

They looked toward Jason, and he didn't say a word. He didn't have to.

"I didn't know that," Reyna said. "When?"

Calypso looked at Jason with longing then turned away and said, "A long time ago."

Reyna glanced over to Dakota and mouthed the words _did you know_ and Dakota nodded.

Piper noticed the look Calypso had given Jason and stuttered, "Were you, were you two…I mean, was it…"

"Like she said, it was a long time ago," Jason said.

"And you've been here, too, Percy?" Piper asked.

Percy nodded, "I landed here after I blew up Mount St. Helens."

Leo's eyes got wide, "You blew up Mount St. Helens?"

"Yeah, but that's another story. Anyway, I was injured and I recovered here," Percy answered.

"Oh, so you were injured, not lost, huh?" Annabeth glared at him.

"Um…well, kinda both," Percy said.

"And you just decided to let me believe you were dead while you stayed here to _recover_?"

"It- it wasn't like that."

"Jason," Reyna interrupted. "Is this where you were when we thought you had been killed by the Trojan Sea Monster?"

Jason nodded, "Yeah."

"So, you mean to tell me, you were here in paradise for two weeks while Kota and I were mourning your death," Reyna shook her head. "That's really messed up, Jason."

Leo rolled his eyes and muttered sarcastically under his breath, "Oh, this is fun."

"I'm sorry, I just…" Jason started.

"I think I need some air," Calypso interrupted as she stood up from the table. "If you will excuse me?"

Annabeth stood up, too, "Yeah, I've lost my appetite."

Reyna threw her napkin down on the table and said, "Me, too."

Piper stood up without saying a word, and all four of them left the table and went their separate ways.

"Now look what you did," Leo said.

"What?" Jason and Percy said at the same time.

"Just give them time to cool off," Dakota said. "They'll get over it…maybe."


	9. Chapter 9

9. Spontaneous Combustion

The sun was rising on Ogygia, and Leo was lying on his back on the deck of the Argo II reconnecting blown wires under the wheel console. One of the wires sparked and gave Leo a shock.

"Ouch," he grumbled.

"You should be more careful, Leo Valdez," said a voice from above him.

Leo looked out from under the console to see three old ladies standing in front of him. The old ladies wore white dresses and white bandannas over their gray hair and carried bags of yarn and knitting needles. Their faces were so wrinkled and pale it made them look like they were about a hundred years old. Leo wasn't sure why, but these old ladies scared him, then he realized they weren't nursing home escapees, they were the Fates.

"Is your vessel repaired?" the lady in the middle asked.

Leo stood up and said, "Almost."

"You must make haste with the repairs and get back underway. You have already been here too long," she said.

"Too long? It's only been a couple of days."

"You have been here for fourteen days."

"Grandma, you got dementia or something? We haven't been here for fourteen days."

"Check your chronograph," the lady on the right said.

Leo checked the ships computerized calendar on the control board and sure enough, fourteen days had passed.

"That can't be right. It must have been damaged," Leo said.

"I assure you, it is correct."

Leo scratched his head wondering why it didn't seem like they had been here for two weeks.

"We guided your ship here after you escaped the Kraken so you could recuperate and repair the vessel," the lady on the left said. "But now you must be leaving. You are running out of time to complete your journey."

"There will be several more stops along the way, young hero," the lady on the right said. "Just remember, you have a deadline and it must be met."

"We have to be in Greece by the solstice," Leo nodded.

"Yes, and you mustn't be late."

"Greece is a pretty big country, how will we even know where to go?" Leo asked.

"Find the island with the Oracle and the serpent, and you will ascertain the site of your final destination," the lady in the middle said.

Leo stared at the Fates for a second then asked in a serious tone, "What awaits us in Greece?"

The Fates hesitated then the lady in the middle said, "Battle."

"Yes, I know that, but could you be more specific?"

"I am afraid not, but I will tell you, your success or failure will depend greatly upon the outcome of the other quest."

"Other quest…what other quest?"

"Everything and everyone is connected; nothing is random. Fate has a design. Your counterparts have a significant role in the Great Prophecy, as do you. It is time for you heroes to fulfill your destiny. You must get going soon, Leo. The gods are waiting."

The Fates began to shimmer and then they disappeared. Leo blinked a couple of times wondering if that really just happened. He turned and looked at the wheel console and the date on the screen still read June sixteenth.

"Oh, this is bad," he muttered to himself then took off running across the deck of the Argo II.

Leo ran down the ship's ramp, across the beach, and through the meadow. Calypso was working in her garden, as usual, and she was a little bewildered at the sight of Leo sprinting across the meadow. Leo ran inside the cave where everyone was still sleeping. Leo jerked all of the curtains back as he tried to catch his breath.

"Guys, wake up," he said still breathing heavily.

There were a few grumbles and yawns, and Dakota sleepily said, "Five more minutes."

"Wake up!" Leo yelled.

"What, what is it?" Jason asked as he sat up in his bed.

"We have to go," Leo said urgently.

Everyone was wide awake now and staring at Leo.

"Is the ship ready?" Piper asked.

"Close enough," Leo said.

"Why the rush?" Percy asked.

"Guys, we've been here way too long."

"See, that's what I've been trying to tell you guys," Reyna said. "We should've left a long time ago."

Time on Ogygia had been moving differently for Reyna. While everyone else had felt like they had only been here for a few days, Reyna knew better; she knew it had been a lot longer. She tried to convince everyone to leave many times, but no one seemed too concerned about leaving.

"And you were right," Leo said to Reyna. "We've been here for fourteen days."

"What?" Annabeth gasped.

"Today is June sixteenth," Leo nodded.

"But that only gives us five days to get to Greece," Annabeth said with worry.

"Yeah, and apparently there are going to be some more detours along the way."

"How do you know that?" Jason asked Leo.

"Those crazy old bats told me, and I don't think they were lying."

"Who told you?" Piper asked.

Leo raised his voice, "The Fates!"

"You saw the Fates? What did they say?" Annabeth asked.

"They said its time to go. Now, come on."

Everyone jumped out of bed, slipped on their shoes, and followed Leo out of the cave. They headed across the meadow toward the beach, and Percy and Jason stopped when they saw Calypso in her garden.

Annabeth tuned to them and said, "Come on."

"Go on ahead, we'll be right there," Percy told her.

"Percy."

"We have to say goodbye."

"Make it quick," Annabeth said then continued on toward the ship.

Percy and Jason walked over to Calypso who was waiting for them.

"You're leaving…again," Calypso sighed.

"We have to," Percy said.

She nodded, "It's your destiny."

Percy hugged her and whispered in her ear, "You know I'll never forget you, and I wish you all the best."

Percy released her and she said, "Have a safe journey."

Percy nodded. He looked to Jason then back to Calypso and said, "Goodbye, Calypso."

She attempted a smile and said, "Goodbye, Percy Jackson."

Percy turned to Jason who was staring at Calypso. Percy patted him on the shoulder as he walked away and headed toward the beach leaving Jason and Calypso alone to say their goodbyes.

A tear rolled down Calypso's cheek and Jason wiped it away.

"The Fates are cruel to bring me back here knowing I would have to leave you again," Jason said sadly.

"It is my punishment," she said.

"Punishment that you don't deserve."

"That's not for you or me to decide."

"Well, it should be," Jason said with anger in his voice.

Calypso put her hand on Jason's cheek to calm him.

"I didn't want to leave you four years ago, and I don't want to leave you now," Jason said.

"But you have to."

Jason nodded.

"A part of you will always be with me, Jason," Calypso said as she touched her hand to her heart. "Right here."

"And you with me," Jason said.

He hugged her then gently kissed her lips.

Calypso took a deep breath and said, "You'd better go. They're waiting for you."

"Calypso, I…" Jason hesitated.

"I know, my hero," she smiled. "Godspeed, Jason and please, be careful."

"Goodbye, Calypso."

Jason kissed her on the cheek and for the second time in his life, he walked away from Calypso. Jason boarded the Argo II with a solemn look upon his face.

"Are you okay, man?" Leo asked him.

"Yeah, let's just get out of here before I do something stupid," Jason said.

Leo fired the engine and pushed the throttle forward. The ship sped along the waters surface then took to the air. They flew away from Calypso's island, and it was all Jason could do not to look back.

Soon, the Argo II was back out over the Atlantic continuing the course toward Greece. Leo told everyone what the Fates had said to him and they all wondered about this other quest and its bearing on their quest. They were curious about the other stops that they would be making along the way, and they questioned whether the gods were really waiting for them.

The sun was getting low in the sky behind them, and it would be getting dark in about an hour. They had flown all day with the most excitement being the strait flush Annabeth drew to win the poker game they had started out of boredom.

Leo had the ship on autopilot as he sat on the wheel deck step tinkering with some scraps of metal and wire. He almost jumped out of his skin when he heard a beep from the console. He hopped up and took a look at the radar screen. There was an incoming object several miles away that was moving very slowly. Leo monitored the radar for the next ten minutes as the object slowly closed on them. He couldn't detect what it was. It had no equipment signature, which probably wasn't a good sign. He decided it was time to inform the crew. He hit a button on the console and the ship went to yellow alert. Everyone made their way to the helm to see what was going on.

"We have a single object incoming due east about a mile out. ETA, two minutes," Leo told them. Jason grabbed the binoculars and scanned the eastern sky until he saw a bright, flickering object flying toward them.

"I see it," Jason said.

"Can you identify it?" Leo asked.

"It looks…it looks like its on fire, but I don't see any smoke."

"Let me take a look," Reyna said.

Jason handed Reyna the binoculars and she looked through them toward the object. She adjusted the magnification to get a better view. It was a giant bird that resembled an eagle, an eagle that was on fire.

Reyna pulled the binoculars from her eyes and said, "I think I know what that is."

"What is it?" Leo asked her.

"It's a phoenix."

"A phoenix, like a rising from the ashes phoenix?" Leo asked.

Reyna nodded, "It's a fire spirit. At the end of its life it builds a nest and both the bird and nest burn to ashes. From those ashes the phoenix is reborn as a new, young phoenix."

"Fire spirit, huh? Now, that's my kinda bird," Leo said.

"Its not known for violence," Annabeth added. "But it will defend its nest."

"And seeing as how the bird is on fire, I'd say we're near its nest," Reyna said.

"Maybe we could talk to it, tell it we're just passing by," Leo suggested.

"If you want to talk to a two hundred pound flying ball of fire with a twenty foot wingspan and razor sharp talons, be my guest, but I don't know how you'd even get close enough without it killing you first," Reyna said.

"Um, guys," Piper said. "It's here."

Everyone looked to see the phoenix soaring in a wide circle above the ship. The bird screeched loudly as it continued to circle the ship getting lower and lower with each pass.

"Percy," Leo said. "Take the wheel and start a slow decent. There's a cluster of islands off the port bow. Just steer toward them."

"What are you going to do?" Percy asked him.

"I'm going to have a little chat with the firebird…and probably get myself killed in the process. Either way, it should definitely be interesting."

The phoenix was getting dangerously close to the ship and it singed the flag atop the mainmast when it flew over. Leo had walked to the bow of the ship and climbed atop the triangular tip where Festus' head was perched.

Everyone watched as Leo stood and waved his arms, "Over here, firebird!"

Dakota looked at Jason, "Is he crazy?"

Jason nodded, "A little bit."

The phoenix noticed Leo and began to swoop down toward him.

"Oh, gods, I hope this works," Leo muttered to himself.

Leo closed his eyes and concentrated. When he opened his eyes, he burst into flames.

"Whoa!" Reyna gasped. "He just lit himself on fire!"

The phoenix plucked Leo from the bow with its claws like an eagle would scoop a fish out of a river. The phoenix began flying toward the cluster of islands off the port bow.

"Follow that fire!" Jason yelled to Percy.

Percy steered the ship to follow the phoenix and Leo. Percy was descending and feared he would have to land the ship, which he had never done before. The phoenix, still carrying Leo began to circle the largest island in the cluster. It began to descend toward a large beach. Percy flew over the island and they watched as the phoenix landed on the beach. Percy made a wide turn to come back for another pass over the island. Once the ship had made the turn, they noticed the phoenix lifting off of the beach and flying toward another island in the cluster, but it had left Leo behind on the island. Percy set up a short final and with some white knuckle flying set the Argo II down safely on the water then sailed toward the beach. Percy beached the ship; everyone disembarked, and ran down the beach to check on Leo.

"Leo, are you alright?" Jason yelled as he ran toward Leo who was no longer in flames.

"I'm fine," Leo said. "Just a few scratches, nothing a little nectar won't cure."

Dakota tossed Leo a canteen, "That's a sweet trick with the fire."

Leo nodded as he took a drink of nectar from the canteen then said, "It comes in handy sometimes."

Leo looked toward the Argo II then looked at Percy, "Nice landing, Percy. I bet you were puckered up tighter than a snare drum when you set her down."

"Pretty much," Percy nodded.

Leo took one more drink of nectar then tossed the canteen back to Dakota. The scratches on his arms and shoulders from the bird's talons had almost completely healed already.

"What happened up there, Leo?" Piper asked.

"I talked to it."

"You actually talked to it?" Reyna asked with surprise.

Leo looked at Reyna and shook his head, "No faith… Of course, I talked to it. I told it who I was and that we didn't mean any harm. Apparently, it knows my dad, so it said we were free to go this time, but if we passed near its nest again, it would kill us."

"Fair enough," Dakota nodded.

"See, guys, sometimes diplomacy does work." Leo smiled.

Suddenly, they began to hear whooping and hollering that sounded like battle cries coming from the forest behind the beach. They drew their weapons as an army burst out of the trees and surrounded them. They were cut off from the ship and had their backs to the ocean.

"Leo, weren't you just saying something about diplomacy?" Dakota asked as he held up his shield and pointed his spear toward the line of warriors in front of them.

"Um…" Leo muttered.

Reyna, who had her bow drawn, said to Leo, "Come up with a diplomatic solution for this, then I'll be impressed."


	10. Chapter 10

10. The Hunters From Hell

The sun had almost set making it hard to see, but there was something they noticed about the warriors that had them surrounded; they were all women. They all looked to be in their late teens and early twenties. They all wore combat boots and had leopard print bandannas on their heads. They wore green camouflage, but very little of it. Their camo button down shirts had the sleeves cut off, their shirt tails were tied up above the navel, and their camo pants had been cut off into shorty-shorts. They looked like a trashy version of the Hunters of Artemis.

"Oh, gods, please tell me these chicks aren't hunters," Dakota said.

"No," Annabeth said. "They're worse."

"Is that even possible?" Reyna asked.

Annabeth turned to Reyna and said, "Amazons."

One of the Amazon warriors stepped forward out of the line and yelled, "Drop your weapons!"

"Drop _your_ weapons!" Leo yelled back.

"Archers!" the Amazon yelled to her line and about half of the nearly one hundred women drew their bows and aimed at them. The other half had their spears raised and ready to throw.

"Drop your weapons or my archers will fire!"

"Okay, what do we do now?" Leo muttered.

"Annabeth," Percy said. "Any suggestions?"

"We're out numbered and have no way to protect ourselves from that many arrows," Annabeth said. "Surrender now; come up with a plan for escape later."

"Are you sure?" Dakota asked.

"At this point, it's our only option, because if we don't, they will kill us."

Everyone knew Annabeth was right, and they all nodded in agreement. They dropped their weapons on the ground in front of them. A dozen Amazon women rushed toward them and began tying their hands behind their backs.

"Well, this was a great idea," Jason grumbled.

"It's better than the alternative," Reyna said.

"Stop talking," one of the Amazons said.

"What's your problem?" Leo asked.

The Amazon woman backhanded Leo across the face, "Keep your mouth shut."

Once their hands were securely tied behind their backs, the Amazon leader walked over and took a good look at them.

"They're half-bloods," one of the women said to her.

"I see that…very good," she nodded. "Take them away and lock them up for the night. We'll deal with them tomorrow."

The Amazons led them through the rainforest and into the Amazon's camp. The camp was situated in a large clearing in the middle of the forest. Torches lit up a path through the heart of the camp. The fire light illuminated rows of huge tents shaped like tepees. The tents were made of tanned animal skins, as were the canopies over the dining pavilions. Campfires dotted the landscape, and the smell of smoked pork filled the air. The women at the camp would stare and whisper to each other as the demigods walked past. When they had walked about half way across the camp the Amazons steered the girls to the left separating them from the guys who were still being pushed along the path.

"Where are you taking them?" Percy asked as he looked back toward Annabeth.

An Amazon pushed Percy in the back and said, "Keep moving."

The girls were stopped at a tent at the end of a row then were pushed inside the tent. The tent was completely empty except for the animal skins that covered the floor.

A woman pulled back the flap that was the tent door, and stuck her head inside.

"Guards will be posted outside all night," she told them. "They have orders to kill you if you try to escape."

The guys were taken to a prison compound on the other side of the camp. The prison was a one acre, perfect square stone floor surrounded by fifteen foot high stone walls. Along the inside walls were eight foot by eight foot prison cells separated by stone walls with iron barred ceilings and doors. The cells were completely empty and offered no protection from the elements. The cells looked out into a courtyard where torches burned for light and several guards kept watch. Each of the guys were tossed into their own cell and locked in.

Leo sat down on the cold stone floor and leaned his back against the rock wall. He was exhausted from the fire trick he had pulled earlier, and soon he was sound asleep and dreaming. Leo's dream began with him standing in complete darkness. He couldn't see anything, but he could hear voices. The voices were whispering, and there were so many coming from all directions that he couldn't make out what they were saying. The whispers began to fade until it was eerily quiet. The ground began to shake beneath his feet, and he saw an orange glow in front of him. A fissure was opening in the ground revealing a blazing fire. The fire suddenly shot out of the hole in a column of flames that reached as high as he could see. Images began flickering in the fire. The images flashed by so quickly that he couldn't tell what it was he was seeing until one image slowed down. His heart began to pound as he saw an image of Hazel sprinting desperately through the flames like she was running for her life. Leo wanted so badly to help her, but he couldn't. The image of Hazel began to fade and was replaced by the image of the most horrible face Leo had ever seen. Its eyes were solid white, its head was shaven, and its pale skin was blistered with burns. It smiled to reveal razor sharp fangs, and Leo knew this monster was a giant. The giant laughed and said to Leo: _You are no match for the giant, Mimas._

Leo woke to his cell door being opened. An Amazon woman jerked him up off the floor, and Leo squinted as the rising sun shined in his eyes. The woman pushed Leo out into the prison courtyard where Jason, Percy, and Dakota were already standing.

On the other side of the camp, Reyna, Piper, and Annabeth had been pulled out of the tent and lined up side-by-side with their hands tied behind their backs. About half a dozen Amazon women were walking around them looking them over.

One of the women, who seemed to be an officer, said to another Amazon, "They will make fine additions to the tribe."

"We are _not _joining your tribe," Reyna said. "And what did you do with the guys?"

"Oh, we haven't killed them…yet," the officer smiled.

Piper's eyes widened, "Yet?"

"If you haven't already noticed, there are no men in this tribe. Once they serve their purpose, they will be sacrificed to the gods."

Piper's eyes were still wide, "Sacrificed?"

"Wait, what's their purpose?" Annabeth asked.

"To mate with members of the tribe, of course."

Reyna chuckled, "You can't be serious."

"Their daughters will be great warriors in the next generation of Amazon women, and you girls will become great warriors in this generation."

"You Amazons are crazier than the Hunters of Artemis if you think _any_ of that's going to happen," Reyna said.

"Well," Piper said. "Maybe we should join the tribe."

Annabeth turned to Piper and asked, "What?"

"Yeah," Piper nodded. "We should stay here and join the Amazons."

Reyna looked at Piper and raised an eyebrow, "Are you drunk?"

Piper tilted her head a little and gave Reyna and Annabeth a look as to say:_ just go with it_. Piper had a plan, and she needed them to play along. She didn't want to charm speak them, but she would if she had to.

Annabeth got the gesture and said, "Yeah, yeah, it might not be so bad."

Reyna rolled her eyes and said, "Whatever."

"Fantastic," the Amazon officer said.

"Under one condition, though," Piper said, laying on the charm speak. "We get the guys first."

Reyna and Annabeth almost broke their necks turning so quickly to Piper in surprise.

"Well," the officer said. "I guess that's an acceptable term, after all, you were the ones who brought them to us."

"So, we have an agreement?" Piper asked.

"We have an agreement," she nodded then turned to another Amazon. "Untie these girls, and get them each a tent and a maiden. The men will be joining them soon."

The other Amazon nodded then said, "But there are four men and only three of them."

"Oh, I'll take two of them," Piper grinned and winked at the Amazon.

One of the Amazons in the group squealed excitedly, "_She's a freak!"_

The Amazons untied their hands and began to escort them through the camp. Piper walked ahead of Reyna and Annabeth as she chatted with the officer.

Annabeth nudged Reyna and nodded toward Piper, "She's pretty clever."

"It's annoying," Reyna said.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the camp in the prison compound, the guys were being lined up for their evaluation. They, like the girls had, stood side-by-side with their hands tied behind their backs. There were eight Amazon women standing about ten feet in front of them.

"What have you done with the girls?" Percy asked.

One of the women stepped forward and said, "The girls will soon be Amazons. They are no longer your concern."

"And you're just going to kill us," Jason guessed.

"Not yet," she said. "Men aren't entirely useless to us. We have to pass our lineage on to the next generation, and that is why you will be kept alive, for the time being, to mate with some of our tribe."

Leo's jaw dropped, "Mate? Did she just say mate?"

Percy shook his head, "Oh, you've got to be kidding."

"Mate?" Leo repeated.

Dakota shook his head, "Not going to happen."

The woman looked surprised and asked, "Are we not your type?"

Another Amazon stepped forward and said, "They do look a little…fragrant."

The guys looked each other up and down then looked back at Amazons.

Jason shook his head and said, "We're not gay."

"What's the problem then?" she asked. "You heroes will have fine daughters that will be assets to this tribe and its future."

Leo was bug-eyed, "Daughters? No, no, no, no daughters. I'm just a kid, and I have a girlfriend."

"There will be no mating, there will be no sex…with any of you…_ever_," Jason said.

"That is where you are wrong, son of Jupiter"

The Amazons began to move in closer to them.

Leo was almost in a full blown panic attack, "Guys, guys, guys, we're about to get gang raped!"

Dakota turned to him and said, "Calm down, Leo."

One of the Amazons walked up close to Dakota and looked him over.

"I want this one, son of Mars," she said in a seductive tone. "His daughters will be disciplined and fierce in battle. Besides, he's the only one of them with any…_experience_."

Dakota winced in aggravation. He really wished she hadn't said that. He slowly turned and looked at the guys who were staring at him with their eyes wide and their jaws dropped.

"Did she just mean what I think she meant?" Leo asked.

"I…I think so," Percy said.

"Um, Kota…" Jason started.

"I was in a relationship for two years-what-get over it," Dakota said quickly.

Jason blinked a few times to process that bit of information. Jason knew Dakota and Reyna's relationship was serious when they were together, but he didn't know it was that serious.

"Commander!" yelled a young Amazon woman who entered the prison compound.

She ran up to the woman who had been talking to the guys, and whispered something in her ear. She nodded then turned to the guys.

"It seems you heroes have been specially requested," she smiled.

She waved her hand and the women led the guys out of the prison, through the camp, and to the tents where their presence had been requested.

Percy stood outside the door of a tent while one Amazon freed his hands and another pointed a spear at him.

"We'll be standing guard out here," she said. "If you try anything stupid like escaping or taking a hostage, we will kill you and your friends, understand?"

"I get it," Percy snapped.

"Good, now get in there," she said and pushed him into the tent.

Percy looked across the tent and was shocked by what he saw. The shocking part wasn't so much the romantic vibe of the room with the burning candles, the animal skin rugs, and the elegant bed, or even the fact that it was Annabeth in the tent with him, what she was wearing was the shocker. She had on some sexy silver and white silk lingerie that didn't cover much at all. Percy's heart pounded in his chest for a few seconds, and then he was suddenly overcome with the urge to laugh.

"Don't say a word," Annabeth warned him.

Percy bit his lip trying not to laugh, but it didn't work; he busted out laughing.

"Stop laughing, it's not funny," Annabeth scolded.

"Sorry," Percy said trying to catch his breath, "It's just...what _are_ you wearing?"

"Barely anything!"

"Yes, I see that, but why?"

"Why do you think, Seaweed Brain?"

"Oh, right," Percy said remembering why he was there in the first place then he smiled and walked toward her, "_Well_…"

Annabeth pointed at him and said, "Don't even think about it."

Dakota stood outside a tent with the tip of a spear pointing only inches from his nose while his hands were being untied.

He glared at the Amazon holding the spear in his face and said, "I ought to take that spear and shove it up your ass."

She smiled and swiftly spun the spear around nailing him across the face with the blunt end. When he lifted his head back up the spear tip was pointing at his face again.

"You try anything," she said. "And I'll see that you get to watch your friends die a slow, painful death."

His hands were released and he rubbed his wrists where the rope had been. The Amazon who had untied him pushed him toward the door of the tent.

Dakota took a deep breath and said, "Touch me again, and I'll throw you a beatin'."

"Get in there," she ordered, and Dakota walked into the tent.

"Oh, can this day _possibly_ get any worse," Dakota said when he saw Reyna standing across the room wearing little more than a scowl on her face.

"Seriously, you think you're having a bad day? Look at me!" she yelled.

"Oh, I see you," he said. "As much as I wish I didn't."

Reyna put her hands on her hips, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Dakota pointed his finger at her, "You know _exactly_ what it means."

Reyna looked down at the black and gold silk lingerie she was wearing and said, "Oh, right, you used to like this sort of thing."

"I still do. That's the problem."

Dakota took a few steps toward Reyna and began taking off his shirt.

"Whoa, hey, what are you doing?" Reyna asked with a bit of panic.

Dakota threw his shirt at her and said, "Put that on."

Jason and Leo stood outside the same tent as their hands were being untied.

"We're both going in there?" Leo asked the guard.

"She requested the both of you," the guard said.

"At the same time?" Leo asked with surprise.

"I hope you guys got some rest last night," the guard smiled. "You're going to need it."

Leo turned to Jason and whispered in frustration, "So we get the crazy nymphomaniac who wants a threesome?"

"Looks like it," Jason said. "It'll be alright, dude. We'll just tag-team it."

The look on Leo's face was utter shock, and he was speechless, which has never happened before.

"It was a joke, Leo," Jason said as he shook his head. "Just don't worry about it, man. I'll handle it."

"Yeah, good, you do that."

When the ropes were removed from their hands, they walked into the tent to see Piper pacing back and forth. Jason and Leo's eyes widened at the sight of her wearing pink lingerie.

"Piper!" Jason said with surprise.

"Guys, thank the gods," she said as she ran toward them.

Leo whistled and said, "Sexy momma!"

Piper reared back and slapped Leo across the face.

"Owww," Leo gasped as he put his hand on his cheek.

Jason laughed, and Leo said to him, "Dude, you were thinking the same thing."

"But I didn't say it."

"Guys, guys," Piper said getting their attention. "What about Percy and Dakota? Were they each taken to a tent?"

Jason and Leo were both looking at Piper, but not at her face.

Jason muttered, "Um, yeah, they're somewhere."

Piper snapped her fingers in front of their faces, "Up here."

Jason and Leo shook themselves out of their daze and Leo said, "Girl, you got to put something else on because we can't concentrate with the daughter of Aphrodite standing here looking like sex on a stick."

Back in Annabeth and Percy's tent, Percy was pulling a cotton sheet off the bed. He folded it in half and wrapped it around Annabeth.

"Thanks," she smiled.

"Tell me this part of the escape plan," Percy said.

Annabeth nodded.

"So what now?" he asked.

"We wait for the signal, and then we run."

Reyna put Dakota's shirt on over the lingerie.

"So, you picked me to see you half naked," Dakota smiled.

Reyna rolled her eyes, "Oh, don't flatter yourself. Piper must have."

"Piper?"

"Yeah," Reyna nodded. "She was the one chatting it up with the Amazon officer."

"She was charm speaking?"

"Yeah, why do you think you're in here with me and not some Amazon skank?"

"What's the plan?" he asked.

"I'm not really sure. She just said to stay alert, and we'd know when to make a break for it."

Piper pulled a sheet off of the bed and quickly folded and twisted it around her body until it was no longer identifiable as a sheet, but looked instead like a cute halter top dress.

"Is that better?" she asked Jason and Leo.

"Eh, a little," Leo said.

"So Piper, what's the plan?" Jason asked.

"Escape," she said.

"Right, but how?"

About that time, horns started blaring all over the Amazon camp. They could hear the women yelling and the sound of horse hooves on the ground.

They heard the guards outside the tent arguing then one of them said, "Let's go."

Leo peeked out the tent door and saw the guards were gone and saw almost all the Amazons running out of the camp.

"The coast is clear," Leo said.

They walked out of the tent and saw Percy, Annabeth, Dakota, and Reyna running toward them.

When they reached them, Percy asked, "What now?"

"Follow me," Piper said, and she took off through the rows of tents.

Everyone followed Piper to a tent a few rows over where she stopped.

"Why are we stopping?" Leo asked.

"Guys, keep watch. Annabeth, Reyna, come on," Piper said as she walked into the tent, and they followed.

Inside the tent were all of their weapons and their clothes.

"Thank the gods," Annabeth said.

They quickly changed out of the lingerie and back into their own clothes. They grabbed up all of their weapons and exited the tent. Reyna tossed Dakota's shirt to him and he put it back on, but now it smelled like Reyna which only made him want to take it off again. Everyone grabbed their weapons, and they began sneaking out of the camp.

They were almost out of the camp and into the forest when they heard a woman yell, "Hey!"

There was a whistle in the air, and Dakota raised his shield just in time to block an incoming arrow.

"Run!" Dakota yelled, and they took off into the forest.

Dakota and Percy blocked incoming arrows with their shields as they ran through the forest toward the beach. Leo pulled a remote from his pocket and pressed a button. They could hear the ship's engine fire in the distance. They continued to run being pursued by about a dozen Amazon women firing arrows at them. They reached the beach and sprinted toward the Argo II. The Amazons were still in pursuit. Reyna drew her bow and began firing arrows at the Amazons as she ran. She took down two of them, but the others kept coming. Dakota and Percy continued to block volleys of arrows as everyone ran up the ships ramp. Once everyone was onboard, the ramp closed and they took cover on the deck.

Leo ran to the helm and Jason yelled to him, "Make it rain, Leo!"

Leo opened the artillery doors and fired a fifty round volley of arrows toward the Amazons taking down many of them. The rest of the Amazons retreated into the forest.

"Alright," Leo said. "Let's get off this gods forsaken island."

Leo pulled the throttle back, and the ship pulled off the beach. He spun her around and began to speed away from the island.

Dakota looked to Percy and said, "Those chicks were nuts."

Percy smiled, "I bet you'll never look at Thalia the same way again."

Dakota shook his head, "No."


	11. Chapter 11

11. Secret Quest

Nico, Rachel, and Hazel sat at a round, wooden table covered in books in the Big House library. They were researching the first Giant War and the Underworld trying to determine the connection between the two and maybe get some insight into why Nico's quest is so vital to winning the coming Giant War.

"I'm not finding much on the giants or the Giant War," Hazel said looking up from her book.

Nico shook his head, "Me either."

"Hey guys, listen to this," Rachel said still looking at a book. "This text says the giants were born from the earth in a place called Phlegra which means the burning lands, and they are immortal in that land as long as their feet are planted firmly on the ground. It says the giants rose up against the Olympians who called upon Hercules to fulfill the prophecy that he and the gods would work together to destroy the giants."

"_The land that burns will give birth, __To great avengers of mother earth_

_The son of Zeus and others of his kind, __Travel to the land where the sun doesn't shine_

_Mortals and gods must form an alliance, __And combine their forces in the War with Giants,_" Chiron recited as he walked into the library.

"What is that?" Hazel asked him.

"The Great Prophecy about the first Giant War," Chiron said.

"You were there, weren't you?" Nico asked.

Chiron nodded, "The battle raged in my homeland of Thessaly. Many of my students, including Hercules, fought alongside the gods to defeat the giants."

Chiron noticed the books spread out over the table and became suspicious of their interest in the first Giant War. He had a feeling something was up.

"Why the sudden interest in the Giant War?" Chiron asked them.

"Oh, um, we're just worried about what's going to happen to the seven once they reach the battlegrounds in Greece," Rachel explained.

Chiron didn't believe that was their only interest, but he didn't press the matter.

"Well," Chiron said. "You won't find much about the war in those books, but I can tell you what I know about it. The war was instigated by Gaea, mother earth, who is a primeval deity formed from Chaos during the division of the world. Gaea was angered by the defeat of the Titans in the first Titan War, so she created the giants to destroy the Olympian gods. The giants were very powerful monsters who were not only mothered by Gaea, but also fathered by Tartarus."

"Tartarus, the pit in the Underworld?" Rachel asked.

"Tartarus isn't just a place," Nico explained. "It's a primeval deity like Gaea. It lives beneath the Underworld feeding on monsters and the souls of the damned."

"That's right," Chiron said. "Tartarus was the third primeval deity created from Chaos after Uranus and Gaea."

"So, if the giants were parented by super powerful deities and they were immortal in Phlegra, how were they defeated?" Hazel asked.

"The Olympians called upon their demigod children to fulfill the prophecy and with the guidance of the Fates, the demigods reached the battlegrounds in Phlegra where the gods had blotted out the sun in an effort to prevent the giants from attacking prior to the arrival of the heroes. Once the heroes arrived, a battle ensued. Because the giants couldn't be killed on the land where they were born, the gods and demigods had to devise a plan to lure the giants out of Phlegra. Athena devised a strategy and was able to lure the giants out of Phlegra and onto the Olympus mountain range in my homeland of Thessaly where the gods and their demigod children were successful in killing the giants, and the Fates cast the giants into Tartarus."

"Do you think it will play out similar to that this time?" Nico asked.

"It's hard to say," Chiron said shaking his head. "At the rate monsters are reforming and with the dead escaping the Underworld, I fear Gaea may be influencing Tartarus, which may make it impossible for the giants to be contained once they are killed."

"What do you mean?" Rachel asked.

Nico looked at Rachel and said, "If Tartarus rejects the giants, they will immediately reform. It'll be like they were never even killed."

Rachel, Nico, and Hazel eyed each other as the wheels turned in their heads. Nico's quest was beginning to make sense, and they were realizing just how important and how dangerous their mission to the Underworld was going to be.

"Well, we must hope that doesn't happen. Now, if you will excuse me, I should be getting to the archery range for my class," Chiron said then left them alone in the library.

"Maybe we should tell him about the quest," Rachel said.

Hazel shrugged her shoulders, "What's the point? It'll only worry him, and he's already got enough on his mind right now."

"Hazel's right," Nico said. "We have to go whether he knows about it or not so why make him worry."

It was quiet between them for a moment then Hazel said, "Three days."

Nico and Rachel both nodded and Nico said, "If Thalia makes it to camp tonight like she said she would, we'll fill her in, and we'll try to come up with some sort of strategy."

"Okay," Hazel nodded. "But in the meantime, we'd better get back to training because I get the feeling we're going to need it."

They put the books back on the library shelves and left the Big House. They went to the arena to practice sword fighting for the rest of the afternoon. Rachel had actually become pretty good with a sword. She had won several sparring matches against some of the Apollo and Hermes campers and was becoming a greater challenge for the Ares campers. Today her sparring partner was Jared, Dakota's brother from the Roman camp. Jared was an excellent swordsman and instructor. He taught her some new attack maneuvers and assisted her with her footwork. He showed her how she could use her mortality to her advantage when fighting an opponent using a celestial bronze weapon. The celestial bronze would pass straight through her inflicting no harm, so she wouldn't have to worry about defense, only offense. They all sparred and practiced until about an hour before dinner then they went to clean up before going to the dining pavilion. At dinner, the dining pavilion was crowded as most of the campers had returned from visiting their families. A few Romans were still there, as well. Some of them had decided to stay at Camp Half-Blood until their fellow Romans returned from Greece. After dinner, as everyone was walking to the amphitheatre for the evening campfire, Nico felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, kiddo," said a voice that Nico recognized; it was Thalia.

"Who are you calling a kid?" Nico smiled; he was so thankful to see her.

Thalia smiled as she thought about Nico's sister, Bianca, and how brave she was and how Nico had turned out to be a lot like her.

"Thanks for coming, Thalia," Nico said.

"Hey, when the Oracle says jump, you say how high. Besides, that's my little brother heading to Greece. I'm going to help him if I can."

"Thalia, you made it," Hazel said as she and Rachel walked up to them.

"Yeah," Thalia said. "The hunt has been intense these last few months, but I got here as soon as I could."

"Ugh," Drew said as she walked up to Thalia. "What are you doing here, _Hunter_?"

"I came to visit my friends. Mind your own business," Thalia sneered.

"I thought all of your friends were headed to Greece?"

"She has other friends, you know," Nico said.

"You losers?" Drew laughed.

"What's your problem, Drew?" Hazel asked. "Are you jealous Piper got called to go on the quest and not you?"

"In your dreams. I'm glad I didn't get called. I wouldn't want to fight those disgusting giants."

Thalia smiled and said, "And that is why no one will remember your name."

Drew just rolled her eyes and walked away.

Thalia looked at Nico, "I take it no one knows about this quest of yours."

"We thought it was best to keep it a secret for now," Hazel said.

"Good thinking," Thalia nodded. "So, are you guys going to fill me in on what's going on?"

Rachel nodded, "Let's go somewhere we can talk."

They skipped out on the campfire and went to Rachel's cave where they would have some privacy. As soon as Thalia walked into Rachel's cave she noticed the paintings of the Underworld.

"That's what we're in for," Nico said.

"Zeus almighty," Thalia gasped. "Where is Hades?"

"Not in the Underworld," Nico answered. "I don't know where he is."

Thalia shook her head still studying the paintings, "So, tell me what you know."

They explained to Thalia about what Chiron had told them about the first Giant War and how they thought Tartarus was the connection to the other quest.

"So, it sounds like we will have to make sure Tartarus isn't being influenced by Gaea to ensure the giants will be contained once they are killed." Thalia said.

"And we'll have to regain control of the Underworld," Nico added. "The prophecy says _the upheaval beneath must be made right._"

Thalia looked at the painting of Elysium burning, "We can't let this happen."

"I'm just worried it's already started," Nico sighed.

Thalia put her hand on Nico's shoulder, "I hope you're wrong."

"I guess we'll find out in a couple of days," Rachel said.

"We leave on the twentieth, right?" Thalia asked.

Hazel nodded, "That's what the prophecy says."

"Well that gives us some time to come up with a plan," Thalia said. "Have you guys been training?"

"Intensely," Nico said.

"Good," Thalia nodded.

"I have a question," Rachel said. "How are we going to get into the Underworld?"

"Well, the closest entrance is in New York City, but we can just shadow travel," Nico said.

"Mrs. O'Leary," Hazel guessed.

Nico nodded.

Thalia pointed to one of the paintings and said, "This is a huge army of monsters. The four of us can't take them on and expect to defeat them."

"I've been thinking about that," Nico said. "And I think we can get some help."

"Help, from whom?" Rachel asked.

"We won't be the only heroes in the Underworld," Nico said.

"Are you talking about the dead?" Thalia asked.

Nico nodded.

"But they're dead," Hazel said.

"It's different in the Underworld," Nico explained. "They are more like the living dead down there."

Hazel shook her head, "That's just creepy."

"So, the dead can fight monsters in the Underworld?" Thalia asked Nico.

"I think so, I'm pretty sure," Nico said.

"You're guessing?" Thalia asked.

"I can't be positive. There's no precedence for this that I know of, but I wouldn't see why they couldn't," Nico said. "And I think they'd be willing to help us if it meant saving Elysium."

"Well, I hope you're right, Nico," Thalia said. "Because it looks like we're going to need all the help we can get."


	12. Chapter 12

12. The Truth Comes Out

Percy was at the helm of the Argo II flying her east over the Atlantic. He and Reyna were the only two on deck, and Reyna was sitting at the bow fletching arrows to refill her quiver. Below deck, in the cargo hold, Annabeth and Leo were looking at maps and charts trying to determine where this island with the Oracle and serpent might be located. The Fates had told Leo to go there, and Annabeth knew to take everything the Fates said seriously. Their guidance was going to be critical to this quest. Jason, Piper, and Dakota were each sound asleep on bunks in the sleeping quarters. None of them had gotten much sleep when they were being held prisoner at the Amazon camp last night so they had decided to rotate some downtime. Jason, Piper, and Dakota had taken first watch and were now getting some much needed rest, though Piper wasn't getting much rest because she was dreaming.

In Piper's dream, she was standing near the edge of a cliff on a beautiful mountain top. The sun was warm on her back and the air smelled of pine and wildflowers. A cool breeze ruffled her hair and gave her goose bumps. She got an uneasy feeling in her gut like someone was watching her. She looked around but no one was there. Suddenly the ground began to shake beneath her feet. She tried to balance herself but the shaking was too intense. She fell to the ground and began sliding toward the edge of the cliff. She scratched and clawed the ground trying to stop herself from sliding off the edge of the cliff. The ground continued to shake and she continued to slide. When she slid off the cliff, she threw her hand up in one last desperate grasp and someone caught it. She was dangling off the edge of the cliff holding the hand of someone trying to save her and when she looked up she saw it was Jason. _Hold on, don't let go,_ he told her. Then, suddenly Jason's face changed. The person she now saw was her father. _I've got you, Pipes,_ he said to her. She watched as the image of her father changed into an image of her mother. Her mother smiled and said, _I won't let you fall._ Then her mother changed into a hideous giant and Piper screamed in terror. _You should be frightened, Piper McLean, because I, Alcycneus, will let you fall,_ the giant said then let go of her hand. She screamed as she plummeted toward the ground.

Piper woke, still screaming, and Jason and Dakota rushed over to her.

"You're okay," Jason told her as he sat down on the bed beside her. "It was just a dream."

Piper was crying as she wrapped her arms around Jason.

He held her tightly and said, "Its okay, you're safe."

Dakota gave Jason a gesture that he would give them some privacy then left the sleeping quarters.

Piper finally stopped crying and released Jason. She began wiping the tears from her face and Jason helped her.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Jason asked her.

She shook her head.

"Okay," Jason nodded. "We don't have to talk."

Jason wrapped his arm behind her back, and she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Thank you, Jason," she said.

"Your welcome."

Dakota walked through the cargo hold and saw Leo and Annabeth arguing over some charts.

"What's going on?" Dakota asked as he walked over to them.

"We're having a little disagreement about which island might be the one the Fates said we had to visit," Leo said.

"How many more islands are there along the way?" Dakota asked.

"There are two between here and the Mediterranean," Annabeth told him.

"And you can't agree on which one it is?"

"No," Leo and Annabeth said simultaneously, and Dakota laughed.

"I'm telling you, Leo, it's the second island," Annabeth said sternly.

"And what if it's the first?" Leo argued. "We'll have to back track, and we don't have the time for that."

"Let's just stop at both," Dakota suggested. "That way we'll be sure."

Annabeth raised an eyebrow at Dakota, "You know what happens to us when we stop at random islands. Do you remember what happened the last time?"

"I try not to," Dakota said.

"We have to try to avoid anymore situations like that," Annabeth continued.

"But like I said, we can't afford to turn around if you're wrong," Leo said to Annabeth.

"He's right, Annabeth," Dakota told her. "And I'm not saying you're wrong, and the gods know I definitely don't want to get into a situation like we did on the last stop, but we just don't have the time to back track if it turns out to be the first island instead of the second."

Annabeth threw her hands up, "Fine, but when it turns out I was right…"

"You can say I told you so," Leo said.

Annabeth just rolled her eyes and walked out of the cargo hold and up onto the deck. She walked up to Percy who was still at the helm and he could tell she was irritated.

"What's wrong?" he asked her.

She shook her head, "Nothing, just plot a course for these coordinates."

Annabeth typed some numbers on the console keypad. Percy pressed a few buttons then turned the wheel slightly.

"Course laid in," he said. "ETA: one hour, twenty minutes."

The mood during the flight to the island was one of apprehension. No one knew what to expect once they landed. Everyone had suited up in their armor and strapped on their weapons preparing for the worst.

Leo was at the helm and yelled out when the island came into view, "There it is."

Leo made his decent toward the small island, and as they got closer, they could tell it was a desolate place. The entire island was a triangular shaped dead wood forest surrounded by slate gray sand beaches littered with driftwood logs. Leo set the Argo II down on the water and he sailed a complete circle around the island to look for danger before putting in on the north beach. Leo lowered the ship's ramp and everyone disembarked. The place was gloomy and dead. It looked as though nothing and no one had been on the island in years, if ever. The air was dry and smelled of dirt, and the sun was beginning to fade behind the dark rain clouds that were rolling in.

"This place is creepy," Leo said.

"Are you scared, Leo?" Reyna joked.

"Yes…" Leo answered. "I mean, yes."

Leo immediately got the feeling something wasn't right when he was unable to change his answer to no.

"What do you guys think: stay together or split up?" Jason asked.

"Split up," Annabeth and Dakota said in unison.

"Won't that be more dangerous?" Piper asked.

"Yes," Annabeth said. "But we can cover more ground."

Dakota nodded, "The sweep will go a lot quicker if we split up."

"What if we run into trouble?" Piper asked.

"Just scream, you're pretty good at that," Dakota said to her, and she looked at him in surprise of his rude remark.

"Okay guys, lets get going," Annabeth said. "We'll make a quick sweep of the island and meet back here."

Everyone split up and entered the dead wood forest. The timber was eerily quiet; there were no birds chirping or animals rustling about. They could barely even hear their own footsteps on the barren forest floor. Because all of the trees were dead, they could easily see the clouds in the sky above thickening. It looked like it could start raining at any minute. The dead wood forest was unremarkable, and there was no sign that anything lived on this island.

Percy emerged from the forest on the other side of the island and saw Annabeth standing on the beach in front of him.

"Anything?" he asked her.

She shook her head, "Nothing."

"Me either."

Annabeth shook her head, "I told Leo this wasn't the right place."

"It's alright, nothing bad has happened, yet."

"_Yet_ being the key word."

"Yeah," Percy agreed. "We'd better get back to the ship."

Annabeth nodded and they began walking down the beach.

Piper and Jason emerged from the forest just a few yards apart.

"Hey," Piper smiled when she saw Jason.

"Hey, did you see anything?" Jason asked her.

"Dead trees and dirt forest floor, that's it," she replied.

"Yeah, me too."

"Leo was right," Piper said as she looked around. "This place is creepy."

"I know, right," Jason nodded. "I had the strangest feeling that someone was watching me when I was walking through the forest, but no one was there."

"I had the same feeling. It was just like in my dream."

"What about your dream?" Jason asked.

"I was standing on a cliff in my dream and I felt like I was being watched, but there was no one around until I fell."

Jason's eyes widened, "You fell? Off a cliff?"

"There was an earthquake, and I lost my balance," Piper explained. "I slid to the edge then you caught my hand…then you were my dad, then my mom, then a giant, and I don't know why I'm even telling you all of this."

"Dreams have meanings, Piper. We have to take them seriously."

"I know, Jason. I've dreamed of giants before, you know," she reminded him. "I know there is a reason I had that dream. I know the Fates are trying to tell me something."

"What do you think they are trying to tell you?" Jason asked her.

Piper hesitated then said, "I think they're trying to tell me I might not be returning from this quest…and again, I don't know why I just told you that."

The color drained from Jason's face and his heart began to pound.

Piper noticed Jason had turned pale and asked him, "Are you okay?"

"No," Jason shook his head. "The thought of you not returning is making me ill…and why did I just say that to you?"

Piper stared off into space like she was in deep thought then she said, "Something's not right here. Something's going on we don't know about."

"What are you talking about?"

"I think we're under a spell," she said.

"How do you know?" Jason asked.

"Because I know spells, and that feeling like you're being watched can be a side effect of some more powerful spells."

"So, this spell makes us say things we don't want to or just talk too much?" Jason asked.

"It makes us speak the truth."

Dakota walked out of the forest as sprinkles of rain were beginning to fall. He looked up at the sky and when he looked back down he saw Reyna walking out of the forest to his left. Reyna smiled and held out her hand to catch the sprinkles.

"You always did like the rain," Dakota said as he walked over to her.

"I love the rain," she corrected.

"Did you come across anything in there?" Dakota asked her.

She shook her head, "It's just an empty dead wood forest."

"Yeah," Dakota nodded in agreement.

Dakota watched Reyna look up at the sky and catch raindrops on her tongue, and it made him smile.

She noticed Dakota smiling at her and asked, "What are you grinning about?"

"You just look so cute when you do that."

Reyna raised her eyebrows, "Um, okay."

"I mean you look cute…and happy…and just ignore me," Dakota stuttered.

"You've been having trouble holding your tongue today."

"What do you mean?" Dakota asked.

"Remember earlier when you told Piper she was good at screaming? Don't get me wrong, it was funny, but it was kind of rude."

"Yeah, I don't know why I said that," Dakota said.

"Well, it was the truth," she said.

Dakota bit his bottom lip and scratched his head.

"What?" Reyna asked him. "What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking something's off. Ryena, ask me a question, something you know I'd lie about."

"You worship the ground your father walks on, don't you?" she asked.

"Yes."

Dakota's eyes widened and he immediately cupped his hand over his mouth.

He shook his head and muttered through his hand, "Huh, uh."

Reyna laughed, "You're under a spell."

Dakota smiled and said," Okay, your turn."

"Oh, no," Reyna said as she covered her ears with her hands.

Dakota pulled her hands down and said, "New Years Day two years ago you were sick. It wasn't food poisoning was it? You were hung over, weren't you?"

"Yes," Reyna said and Dakota laughed.

"That punch at the New Years Eve party was spiked," she insisted.

Dakota raised an eyebrow, "But you knew it was spiked."

"Well, yeah," Reyna said then stomped her foot. "Dangit!"

Dakota was still laughing, "You're under the same spell."

"Alright," she said in a more serious tone. "If you want to play that game…Why did you do it, Kota? Why did you end it? Why did you leave me?"

Leo was almost through the forest when he got a chill up his spine that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He slowly turned around and saw a man standing behind him. Leo gasped in surprise and took a step back right into a dead tree. The man was middle aged with thick gray hair and a neatly trimmed beard. He wore a black trench coat over a business suit and had on a pair of Italian leather loafers that probably cost a fortune. The man didn't look threatening to Leo, but he did look out of place.

"Who are you?" Leo asked the man.

"Who are you?" the man countered.

"Leo Valdez, son of Hephaestus."

"Nice to meet you Leo Valdez," the man smiled. "I am the wizard Aeetes."

"Circe's brother?"

"You know my sister?" Aeetes asked.

"No, not personally," Leo said. "But some of my friends have met her."

"Hmm, that's unfortunate for them. She can be more like a witch than a sorceress sometimes."

"So I've heard," Leo nodded. "Kinda like your daughter, huh?"

"Medea? What would you know about my daughter? She's been dead for centuries."

Leo shrugged his shoulders, "Whatever you say, pal, but um…what about you? Are you a good wizard or a bad wizard?"

Aeetes smiled and said, "I guess that just depends on your point of view."

"My point of view?"

"Leo, everything that everyone perceives depends greatly on their own point of view. I guess that is why I simply prefer the truth."

"But not everyone tells the truth," Leo said.

"Ah, but here they do," Aeetes said. "I cast a spell over this island long ago. A lie cannot be told here."

Leo pulled a piece of scrap metal out of his tool belt and started fiddling with it.

"Oh, you've already tried to tell a lie here," Aeetes guessed.

"Yes, but it was just a little white lie," Leo said as he put the scrap metal back into his tool belt. "What do you want with us?"

"Hey, you landed here. I did not bring you here," Aeetes said in defense. "You are free to go at any time. You are not my prisoner."

Leo looked a little confused then asked, "Do you think the Fates led us to your island? Do you think we're here for a reason?"

"The Fates never do anything without cause," Aeetes explained. "Perhaps they felt you all needed to free yourselves from your burdens before going into battle."

"What burdens?" Leo asked.

"Secrets, lies, fears, doubts, regrets," Aeetes said. "Once those burdens are weighted to reality and you finally surrender to the truth, only then will you realize just how much those burdens were actually holding you back."

It was raining lightly on Percy and Annabeth as they walked down the beach.

Percy noticed Annabeth was being very quiet so he asked, "Are you alright, Annabeth? You're being awfully quiet."

She shook her head, "No, I'm not alright. I've got too much on my mind."

Percy was surprised to hear her say she wasn't alright. Her pride never lets her say things like that.

"What I mean is…I'm worried," she said.

"What are you worried about?" Percy asked her.

"The rest of the journey, the war, the other quest, you, us, everyone," Annabeth rambled.

"Whoa, slow down. Where's this coming from?"

"You asked what I was worried about, and I told you…which isn't like me at all is it?"

"No, its not. What's going on, Annabeth?" Percy asked.

"I'm not sure, but something is definitely not right," she answered.

"Any theories?"

"Just one," she said. "Will you help me test it?"

"Sure, what do you want me to do?" he asked.

"Just answer some questions," she said.

"Okay, shoot."

Annabeth thought for a moment then asked, "Are you a closet Taylor Swift fan?"

"Yes," Percy said surprised by his answer.

Annabeth had a big grin on her face, "Okay, one more. You haven't been able to get the image of me in lingerie out of your head, have you?"

"No," Percy said. "Oh my gods, I can't tell a lie."

"It's got to be a spell," Annabeth said.

"I can't tell a lie," Percy said still stunned by his answers.

"Oh, don't worry about it, Percy. You're a terrible liar anyway."

"I know, but you, you're a good liar."

"Percy Jackson!" Annabeth gasped.

Percy shook his head and muttered, "Oh, I really don't like this spell."

Jason had a confused look on his face and he asked Piper, "Why would someone cast a truth spell on us?"

"I don't think it was cast on us," Piper said. "It's too powerful. I think its cast over the entire island and only a very powerful sorceress or wizard could do that."

Jason began to get nervous and turn pale as he realized he couldn't lie if Piper asked him a question.

"Are you okay?" Piper asked when she noticed he looked flushed.

"I'm nervous," he answered.

"Are you afraid you're going to say something you don't want to?"

"Yes…and you're going to take advantage of it, aren't you?"

Piper grinned and nodded, "Yes."

Jason had been ducking Piper's questions for months and this was Piper's opportunity to finally get the truth out of him. Of course, she was going to take advantage of it.

"That's not the answer I wanted to hear," Jason said.

"And _lets talk about it later_ isn't what I've wanted to hear for the past six months."

"What do you want from me, Piper?"

"I want to know how you feel about me," she said. "You know how I feel about you. I've never kept that a secret. You've known since the moment you woke up on that bus and I was holding your hand. Jason, what I want to know is will you and I ever have a chance or am I grasping for something I'll never reach?"

Jason took a deep breath then said," Okay…okay… When my memories were wiped and we were on the quest, I became attached to you. I could feel myself falling for you. Then, I got my memories back and realized you weren't the only one I was falling for or had ever fallen for. Things got complicated so I did my best to avoid it. On this trip though, everything I've been trying to avoid has been thrown at me like a ton of bricks. Like how terrified I was when you were in the water when we were fighting the Kraken and how hard it was seeing Calypso again and learning just how serious Reyna's relationship was with my best friend and realizing just how much he really loved her and still does and this morning, seeing you wearing…um, very little. It's all been a lot to process and my feelings right now are just as mixed up as they have ever been, but there are some things that have become clearer. Reyna is one of my best friends and has been since I can remember. After the Titan War, we became even closer. She and Kota had been split up for a while and at that point Kota was sick and absolutely horrible to everyone including me. Reyna and I were each other's support. Then I met you and it was like taking a breath of fresh air. It was like I was falling and you caught me. You've become one of my best friends and someone I care deeply for. Reyna…she's my friend and always will be, but that's all she will ever be. You're not grasping for something out of reach. And I really do think that someday you and I will get a chance, but that day's just not here yet."

Piper looked at him, not with resentment or anger, but with understanding and gratitude for finally telling her the truth.

She mustered a smile and said, "Come on, we'd better get back to the ship."

The color instantly drained from Dakota's face when Reyna asked the question. Dakota closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

He opened his eyes and said, "Leaving you was the hardest thing I've ever done. Letting go of the one thing that made it all worth it, the one person I loved more than anything was torture; it still is."

Reyna shook her head, "Then why did you give up on us?"

"Three months before I broke it off between us, Venus paid me a visit. She gave me a warning. She told me that the woman who loved me would have a tragic life, one filled with pain, heartache, grief, and death. She said it was my curse and that I would have to live with the consequences. I had to protect you from having a life like that. I wasn't going to let your life get any harder than it already was, so I made the decision to let you go, to spare you from the consequences of my curse."

"Kota, did you ever once stop and think to ask me what I thought about this curse or what I thought was best for me and for us?" she asked.

"I know you, Reyna. I know you would've just blown it off and not taken it seriously."

"And you're absolutely right!"

"That's why I had to make the decision on my own," he said.

"It wasn't just your decision to make. That decision affected both of us. Gods Kota, do you really think my life would be any worse if you and I were still together? I mean, seriously, have you looked at my life lately? Tragedy, grief, heartache, death, that's all it's been, that's all it will ever be. That's all any demigod's life will ever be. It's everyone's curse."

Dakota shook his head, "You don't get it. The way she said death…it was like she was talking about your death."

"I'm not afraid to die, Kota."

"But I'm afraid of you dying!" he yelled.

"Why are you afraid?" she asked.

"Because I don't think I could live without you somewhere in my life."

Reyna shook her head, "Oh, what, so you just figured you could dump me but still be my friend or be close to me and that would be alright, that it would be enough. That as long as I was alive it made it okay, that it justified what you did to me!" she yelled.

"I thought I was saving your life!" he yelled back.

"Well, you know what you did? You destroyed it!" she yelled with tears welling up in her eyes. "You think it was hard on you? It was just as hard on me! I've never been through anything more painful in all my life! And now I find out it all could've been avoided if you would've just been honest with me then! Ugh…you can be such an idiot sometimes!"

Dakota shook his head, "It took you over a year to finally yell at me about it."

"Because for the longest time, I didn't even want to look at you!"

"Well, do you finally want to have it out about it? Do you want to fight about it and scream and yell at me and tell me I deserve it?" he asked.

"You do deserve it!" she yelled as she paced in frustration. "But you don't want to fight with me right now because I'm so angry I'd kick your ass up and down this beach!"

"Then do it!" he yelled.

Reyna stomped up to Dakota, reared her arm back, and slapped him across the face just as hard a she could.

"That's for lying to me and not trusting me with the truth back when it could've made a difference!" she screamed at him.

She reared her arm back and slapped him again.

"And that's for thinking you had the right to make the decision for us to be over on your own, without even asking me how I felt about it!"

Tears streamed down her face as she reared back and slapped him again.

"And that's for breaking my heart you son of a bitch!"

Dakota's eyes were red, but not out of anger, out of guilt, regret, and sadness over what he had done to her, what he had done to them.

Reyna swung at him again, but this time Dakota caught her wrist before her hand struck his face.

"What was that one for, Reyna?" he asked as he gripped her wrist.

Reyna was crying and tried to catch her breath.

Her voice was quite and cracked when she said, "For making me love you."

Dakota looked into her tear filled eyes and pulled her arm to his chest. They stared each other in the eye as the rain and tears streamed down their faces, then Dakota leaned in and kissed her, and she didn't fight it. When the kiss was over he released her hand. She stepped away and turned her back to him.

It was quiet between them for a few seconds then Dakota asked, "Is it too late for us?"

Reyna, with her back still to him, said, "Kota, I don't know if I can forgive you or ever trust you again."

"Forgiveness and trust are earned," he said. "Let me earn it."

She turned to him blinking the tears and rain out of her eyes.

She stared at him for a few seconds and said, "Then earn it."

She turned and walked down the beach away from Dakota in the pouring rain.

Annabeth was facing Percy with her hands on her hips, "So, are you saying I lie all the time?"

"No," Percy said. "I'm just saying you hold a lot back."

"I hold things back because showing weakness is unacceptable and besides, it would only make you worry."

"I worry anyway." Percy said.

"Well, you shouldn't," she said. "I can take care of myself."

"I know you can, but I still want to help."

"I don't need your help," she snapped.

Percy put his hands on his head in frustration, "Agh…why do you always have to make things so difficult?"

"Why do you have to make me so angry and drive me so crazy?"

Percy shook his head, "If I make you that angry and drive you that crazy, then why do you even stay with me?"

"Because…" Annabeth hesitated. "Because I…"

"Tell me, Annabeth!"

"Because I love you! There, I said it! Are you happy now!"

Percy was caught off guard, and he didn't know what to say. Annabeth just turned and walked away from him. She walked over to a driftwood log lying on the beach and sat down on it. Percy walked over and sat down beside her.

"Annabeth."

She wouldn't look at him so he touched her chin to pull her gaze toward him. She had tears in her eyes.

"Annabeth…you asked me a question," Percy said to her. "You asked if I was happy now, and the answer is yes I am. It makes me happy to know that the girl I love loves me back."

Annabeth took a deep breath, "You really mean it?"

"I can't lie," Percy said as he wiped the tears from her face. "And even if I could, I wouldn't lie about that. I love you, Annabeth."

She smiled, but also looked like she was going to start crying again so Percy kissed her before she could shed another tear.

Aeetes looked at Leo carefully, like he was trying to read his mind.

"You do not carry many burdens, do you Leo?" Aeetes asked.

"I suppose not," Leo said.

"But the one you do carry weighs on you greatly."

"And what burden is that?" Leo asked.

Aeetes shook his head, "It's a terrible thing to live in fear, Leo. We all have a dark cloud of fear and doubt that follows even the best of us. But remember, fear is useful. It keeps us grounded and makes us realize what is truly important to us."

"What if I can't control my fear?" Leo asked.

"You're stronger than that. Use your strengths to overcome your weaknesses." Aeetes told him.

Leo nodded.

"Fight bravely, young demigod, and you will be remembered," Aeetes said then he vanished into thin air.

Leo rubbed his forehead wondering what exactly Aeetes was talking about. Leo knew this wasn't the island they were looking for, so he headed back to the ship. When he got to the north beach, the rain had stopped and everyone was there waiting on him.

"There you are," Jason said with relief.

Leo looked toward Annabeth and said, "You were right. This wasn't the island we were looking for."

"I told you so," Annabeth smiled with satisfaction.

"Come on guys," Piper said. "Let's get out of here."

Everyone boarded the Argo II, and Leo steered her away from the island.


	13. Chapter 13

13. Constricted

Dakota was lying on his back on a blanket that was spread out over the sand. He had his arms pulled back as rested his head on his hands. The sunshine reflected off his sunglasses, and he could hear the sound waves crashing and smell the ocean; he was at the beach. A hand touched his bare chest, and he looked to his left. Reyna was lying on her side next to him wearing her silver bikini and her sunglasses. She smiled at Dakota and asked, _Did you doze off?_ He returned the smile and said, _I guess I did._ The smile faded from Reyna's face when she said, _Kota, I won't be able to heal you this time. _Dakota was confused by what she said and he asked, _What are you talking about?_ Reyna didn't answer; she just turned and stared toward the ocean. Dakota tried to get her attention, _Reyna._ Dakota looked to see what she was staring at; it was an enormous wave building in the distance. Dakota looked back toward Reyna, but she was gone. Dakota stood up and was about to run from the incoming tsunami when he heard a voice from behind him say, _You cannot run from death._ Dakota turned around to see a thirty foot giant standing behind him. The giant had red, scaly legs, wore black battle armor over its immense torso, and its curly red hair was a rats nest. _Which giant are you? _Dakota asked. _I am Mimon, _the giant said. _The bringer of your death._ Dakota could hear the tidal wave approaching, and when he turned toward the ocean, the wave broke onto the beach. Dakota tried to run, but it was already too late, and the wave swept him under. He struggled to swim to the surface, but the water was just too swift and powerful. He couldn't breathe, and he knew he was about to drown.

Dakota woke in his bunk gasping for air. He looked around the sleeping quarters and saw everyone was still sound asleep in their bunks except for Leo; his bunk was empty. Dakota quietly put on his boots and left the sleeping quarters. When he walked onto the deck of the Argo II, the sun was just beginning to peak over the horizon. He walked over to the helm where Leo was standing.

"Good morning," Leo said.

Dakota rocked his head back and forth a couple of times popping his neck.

"You not sleep well?" Leo asked.

"Not really," Dakota answered. "Bad dream."

"Yeah, I had one of those the other night," Leo said then held up a thermos. "Coffee?"

"Please," Dakota said.

Leo poured Dakota a cup of coffee and Dakota took a sip.

"Did you dream about giants?" Leo asked.

Dakota nodded as he sipped his coffee.

"Me too," Leo said.

"It's really no surprise since we'll be battling them soon."

Leo nodded then asked, "Do you think we'll win, Dakota?"

"There are many variables in battle, Leo. A million things have to go right to win a war, but I have confidence in this group's ability and in the leadership abilities of Jason and Percy."

There was a beep from the wheel console.

"What's that?" Dakota asked.

"The next island is in range," Leo answered.

"How far?"

"We'll be there in about forty five minutes," Leo said. "Do you think we should wake everyone?"

"No, let them sleep."

As they approached the island, Jason walked up onto the deck.

"Hey, guys," Jason said.

"Hey, bro," Leo said to him.

Jason looked across the starboard bow and saw that the ship was descending toward a large tropical island.

"Is that it?" Jason asked Leo.

"It had better be," Leo said.

"Is everyone else still asleep?" Dakota asked Jason.

"They're getting around," Jason said.

Leo began to fly a circle around the island as everyone else began to emerge from below deck. Dakota immediately noticed a narrow column of smoke rising out of a clearing on the west side of the island.

"There, Leo," Dakota pointed toward the smoke.

"I see it," Leo nodded.

Leo finished his circle then landed the Argo II just off the west beach. Leo sailed her toward the island as everyone strapped on their armor and weapons. Leo beached the ship and lowered the ramp.

"Does anyone know what to expect?" Percy asked as they walked down the ramp and onto the beach.

Annabeth and Reyna eyed each other and a mutual knowing passed between them.

"Well," Reyna said. "If it's what I'm thinking, we will be visiting the Oracle of Terra."

"Huh?" Leo asked.

"Gaea, if you prefer," she continued. "She is one of my fathers Oracles. A long time ago, she was threatened by a Python that was sent by Juno. My father killed the snake, and when it eventually reformed it was cursed to be the Oracles protector forever."

"So, we have to get past a snake to get to the Oracle?" Piper asked.

Leo shrugged his shoulders, "No big deal, I was the rattlesnake exterminator back home."

"It's a Python, not a rattler," Annabeth corrected.

"So, what? Sure they're a little bigger, but at least they aren't poisonous," Leo said.

Reyna shook her head, "No, not poisonous, but a lot bigger."

Piper looked worried and asked, "How much bigger?"

No one said a word which made Piper worry even more.

"It doesn't matter how big it is," Jason said breaking the silence. "We can handle it."

Everyone nodded, and Leo pulled a handheld GPS from his pocket.

"Okay, to get to the clearing with the smoke, we have to go that way," Leo pointed into the forest.

They began walking through the dense tropical rainforest. By the time they reached the clearing almost an hour later, everyone was filthy and dripping with sweat. They walked out into the clearing which was a lush green pasture the size of about five football fields. It was surrounded on three sides by one hundred foot tall limestone cliff faces. To their left was a small cave carved into the cliff side with a small cooking fire burning outside the cave entrance. There was a cast iron pot over the fire and whatever was cooking smelled wonderful. In the cliff face to their right was a much larger cave, one big enough to park a freight train inside.

"It's beautiful," Piper smiled as she looked around the clearing.

"Something smells delicious," Leo said.

"It does smell pretty good, doesn't it?" Percy agreed.

Annabeth and Reyna were on edge, and they kept glancing toward the large cave. Dakota noticed that they seemed to be on high alert.

"What is it?" Dakota whispered to them.

Just then, they heard a faint hissing sound coming from the large cave.

"Did you hear that?" Reyna asked.

"Hear what?" Leo asked.

"Shh…"

The hissing became louder and louder then two glowing yellow circles became visible inside the cave. The glowing objects became bigger as the hissing got louder. The glowing circles were as big as basketballs with a black vertical line in the center of each one.

"Are those eyes?" Piper asked as her eyes widened.

"Um…" Reyna started, but she was cut off by the sight of a one hundred foot long Python as big around as a minivan slithering out of the cave.

"Holy crap!" Leo gasped.

Everyone drew their weapons and stood ready to attack as the giant yellow and brown snake slithered into the clearing.

Dakota looked at Reyna and asked, "Slice and dice?"

Reyna nodded.

The Python slithered closer to them then reared its head up, opened its enormous mouth, and hissed so loudly it almost sounded like a roar.

"Oh my gods, that big snake is going to eat us!" Leo yelled.

The Python suddenly whipped the back half of its body toward them.

"Jump!" Dakota yelled.

Everyone jumped, and the snake's body passed under them. The snake quickly whipped back knocking everyone to the ground except for Dakota who jumped and landed on the Pythons tail. The snake lifted its tail, and Dakota slid down the back of the Python like a skateboarder on a half pipe. Everyone got to their feet and watched as Dakota ran down the Pythons back toward its head using his spear like a hiking staff to keep his balance on the squirming snake.

"What is it with children of the god of war and really big snakes?" Percy asked.

Annabeth just shook her head.

"What?" Jason asked Percy.

"Long story," Percy said.

Percy remembered the fight with the Drakon last summer, and he looked over to Annabeth. Annabeth grinned at him and nodded like she was reading his mind.

She pulled her Yankees cap out of her back pocket and said, "Let's do it."

She put her cap on and disappeared, and Percy drew his sword and charged the Python; Jason, Piper, and Leo were right behind him. Reyna drew her bow and began firing arrows at the Python. With each hit of their weapons, green slime would ooze from the wound, but the wounds healed quickly. Percy was on the snakes back stabbing Riptide into its scales. Leo was throwing fireballs at the Python causing severe burns on its skin. Jason was using his ability to fly to keep the snake from knocking him off his feet while he sliced at it with his sword. The snake suddenly made a violent jolt and whipped its tail in the air catching Jason. The Pythons body began to coil around him. It constricted his movement and began squeezing him.

"Jason!" Percy yelled.

Percy and Piper began climbing the coils to attempt to free Jason, but the snake whipped around again this time capturing Percy in its coils and knocking Piper to the ground. Annabeth became visible as she ran down the snakes back toward Percy and Jason; Dakota was right on her heels. Reyna and Leo attempted to distract the Python while Annabeth and Dakota tried to free them.

"I'm fine," Percy said to Annabeth. "Help Jason."

Annabeth and Dakota stabbed the snakes coiling body, but it was no use. With every breath Jason and Percy took, the snake just constricted tighter. They could hear Jason and Percy's armor being crushed, and Jason suddenly cried out in pain.

"It's breaking his ribs!" Annabeth yelled.

"Annabeth, help Jason," Dakota said. "I've got an idea."

Dakota began running down the snakes back toward the head and Piper began to climb the coils to help Annabeth in her attempt to free Percy and Jason. Dakota reached the top of the snakes head and drove his spear into its skull. The Python hissed in aggravation, but the blow wasn't fatal. Reyna was still firing arrows, and Leo was still throwing fireballs at the snake.

"Reyna!" Dakota yelled down to her. "Shoot its eyes out!"

Reyna notched two arrows and aimed at the snakes head.

"It won't keep its eyes open!" she yelled up to Dakota.

Dakota wrapped his ankles around his spear which was still sticking out of the Pythons skull. He lied down on his belly across the snakes head and grabbed an eyelid with each hand forcing the eyes to stay open.

"Shoot it, Reyna!" he yelled.

Reyna aimed carefully then Leo yelled, "Whoa! Hey, Dakota's right there! If you miss, you could hit him."

"Leo, there's something you should know about me," Reyna said calmly as she concentrated on the target and the timing. "I never miss."

She fired both arrows at the same time piercing both eyes dead center in the pupil. The Python reared up and hissed in pain. Its coils loosened dropping Percy and Jason to the ground. The snake whipped around violently knocking Dakota, Annabeth, and Piper to the ground as well. Jason was injured so they helped pull him to safety. They turned back to the snake which had green slime oozing from its eyes. The Python reared its head up about to strike when Dakota drew his sword and began running toward it. The Python opened its mouth to strike at the same time Dakota leaped. Dakota's jump landed him inside the snake's mouth, and the snake immediately swallowed him whole.

"Kota!" Reyna screamed.

The Python began to squirm and whip about uncontrollably. Everyone ducked, dodged, and rolled to avoid being struck.

"It's having a seizure!" Leo yelled.

The Python suddenly stopped moving then exploded into green slime that splattered all over everything and everyone. They wiped the slime from their faces as they stood in shock of what had just happened.

"He killed it," Leo said in surprise.

Dakota was lying on his back in a huge puddle of slime. He sat up and wiped the slime from his face. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief to see him alive.

Dakota got to his feet and yelled, "That's how it's done right there!"

Leo began to giggle then broke out laughing hysterically. Everyone else began to laugh, too, but when Jason laughed, he grabbed his chest and collapsed.

"Jason!" Piper yelled as everyone ran to him.

Reyna knelt next to him, and he winced, "My ribs."

Reyna began to gently unstrap his armor, and Piper knelt down and helped her. Once they had removed his armor, Piper used her dagger to cut his shirt off of him. His chest and back were red and purple from the snakes crushing coils.

Reyna gently touched his chest for a second, and he winced in pain.

"Yep," Reyna said. "Four cracked ribs."

"Can you heal him?" Piper asked as she wiped the sweat from Jason's brow.

"Yeah," Reyna nodded. "Okay Jason, you know the drill."

Jason closed his eyes preparing for the pain, "Do it."

Reyna put both hands on his chest, and he cried out in pain. Reyna's breathing became heavier, and Jason's screams intensified. A few seconds later though, Jason stopped screaming, and Reyna removed her hands from his chest.

"Better?" Reyna asked him.

Jason took a deep breath and said, "Much, thank you."

Reyna pulled a square of ambrosia from her pocket and broke it in half. She ate half and gave the other half to Jason. Reyna and Jason were both a little fatigued, so Piper helped Jason to his feet, and Annabeth helped Reyna up.

"That's amazing," Annabeth said shaking her head.

"An astoundingly powerful child of Apollo, indeed," said a woman's voice from behind them.

Everyone quickly turned around and saw a woman standing there with here hands on her hips. She was a pretty lady, maybe in her late twenties, with long, straight brown hair and brown eyes.

"It's about time you guys showed up," she said.

"You were expecting us?" Percy asked.

"Hello…seer here. Of course, I was expecting you, although, I wasn't expecting you to make such a mess once you got here," she said as she looked around at the green slime everywhere.

"You're the Oracle?" Leo asked her.

"That's me," she smiled.

"The Fates told us to come here, that you had some information that we needed," Leo said to her.

"The Fates sent you here, did they? I ought to make those demented geriatrics come clean this mess up then."

Everyone stared at her blankly.

"It was a joke, guys. Jeez, lighten up," she shook her head.

"The Fates said you know where we need to go in Greece," Annabeth said.

"I do, and I'll tell you, but first, what did you bring me?" the Oracle asked.

"Bring you?" Piper asked her.

"Yeah…gift, offering," the Oracle said.

"Oh," Piper said.

Everyone began digging through their pockets trying to find something to give to her.

Leo pulled the handheld GPS out of his pocket and handed it to her, "How about this?"

"Ooo, and it's a Garmin," she smiled as she looked it over. "Does it have all the new software?"

"Fully updated," Leo assured her.

"Sweet," she smiled. "Good gift. Okay, so location…"

She began typing into the handheld GPS.

"Ah, here it is," she said looking at the screen.

She held out the GPS so Leo and the others could see it.

"Thessaly?" Annabeth asked.

"That's right," the Oracle said and began pointing to the screen. "See this mountain range here near the Macedonian border? That's the Olympus range. Now over here are the Ossa and Pelion mountains. And in between these mountain ranges are the Larissa lowlands which are comprised of rich, fertile basins and river valleys except for this one spot. You see, when Gaea created the giants from the earth she picked the most fertile land in Greece. When the giants were born, the land was no longer rich and fertile. They call it the Burning Lands because nothing grows there anymore. The plants simply burn up in the summer sun; they wilt and die."

"So, Phlegra…that's where we have to go?" Annabeth asked.

"Smart girl," the Oracle smiled. "Although, I suggest you not stay there for long. The giants are immortal in the land where they were born. Your best bet would be to get the giants out of Phlegra so you can actually have a fighting chance."

"How do we do that?" Percy asked.

"Well, don't ask me. I'm not a battle strategist," the Oracle said. "Anyway, you should have no trouble finding it. The gods have blotted out the sun in Phlegra in anticipation of you're arrival. Just look for the dark spot on the map, the place where the sun doesn't shine."

Everyone nodded.

"That's all I got," she smiled. "You guys better get going. You're running out of time."

"Thank you for your help," Leo said.

"Your welcome," she smiled. "And be safe."

Everyone nodded and began walking toward the forest.

"Hey, Leo," the Oracle called after him.

Leo turned around, and she tossed the GPS to him.

She smiled and winked, "It's the thought that counts, babe."

Leo smiled and nodded to her then joined the rest of them in their trek back to the Argo II.


	14. Chapter 14

14. Timing Is Everything

The first thing on everyone's agenda once they were back onboard the Argo II was to shower. They were all scummy and soiled, and they reeked of putrid Python slime. There were two bathroom facilities below deck: one for the girls and one for the guys. They were sparse, but efficient. They each had two shower stalls, two toilet stalls, a shelf for towels, and a pedestal sink with a mirror hanging over it. The facilities looked more like gymnasium locker rooms than bathrooms.

Annabeth was showering while Piper and Reyna stood at the single pedestal sink looking into the mirror as they combed their now clean hair. Piper stared at Reyna in the mirror, and it was beginning to make Reyna uncomfortable.

"Thank you…for earlier," Piper finally said.

"Huh?" Reyna asked wondering what exactly she was referring to.

"For healing Jason."

"It wasn't the first time I've ever healed his injuries," Reyna said as she put her hair up into a ponytail. "And it most likely won't be the last."

"Right, but still, I know how much it takes out of you," Piper said still only looking at her in the mirror.

Reyna turned to Piper and said, "You really care about him, don't you?"

Piper turned to her and nodded, "I do."

It was quiet between them for a moment then Reyna said, "I'm going to go lie down for a while."

Piper nodded, and Reyna left the bathroom.

Jason had already showered and gone to the sleeping quarters to take a nap because he was still fatigued from his injury.

Dakota was standing at the sink shaving when Percy yelled from the shower, "Dude, I still can't believe you got eaten by a snake."

"Yeah, not something you see everyday, huh?" Dakota laughed.

Percy turned the water off and yelled to Dakota, "Hey Dakota toss me a towel, will you?"

Dakota rinsed his face then tossed Percy a towel.

"I'm going to go relieve Leo," Dakota told Percy then left the bathroom.

Dakota walked up onto the deck and over to the helm where Leo was.

"I'll take over," Dakota said to him. "Go wash that funk off."

Leo laughed, "Alright."

Percy and Annabeth walked out of the bathrooms at the same time and almost ran into each other.

"You clean up good," Annabeth smiled.

"And you smell good," Percy said as he leaned in and kissed her neck right below her ear.

She swatted his arm and said, "Stop that."

He smiled at her then pulled her into a deep kiss that she melted right into until they were interrupted by Leo.

"Come on, you two, get a room," Leo grinned.

"Oh gods Leo, you smell," Annabeth grimaced.

"You think?" Leo said sarcastically as he looked at how filthy he was.

"Just go, go take a shower, you stink," Annabeth said as she pointed to the bathroom.

Leo just laughed and walked into the bathroom.

She turned back to Percy, and he had a huge grin on his face.

"What?" she asked him.

"I love you," he said almost in a laugh.

Annabeth just rolled her eyes and smiled, "Shut-up."

Percy laughed and walked along side her toward the deck.

Meanwhile, Jason and Reyna were both sound asleep on bunks in the sleeping quarters. Jason twitched and jerked in his sleep; he was dreaming. His dream began with flashes of lightning illuminating images of people he knew: his friends, his sister, and all those he had lost over the years. So many faces came and went so quickly that he had trouble focusing. Suddenly, his hands began to feel wet and sticky. He raised his hands and when the lightning flashed again he noticed they were covered in blood, and he began to tremble. The lightning flashed more rapidly and he was able to make out the image of his sister, Thalia, standing in front of him. _You have blood on your hands, _she said to him. _It's not my blood, _he said. _Whose blood is it? _Thalia gave Jason a sad look and said, _It doesn't matter whose it is, you still have blood on your hands. _Jason looked back at his hands and the blood was gone. When he looked back up at Thalia, she was gone, too. In her place, was the image of a giant, but not just any giant, the giant that he had faced at the wolf house six months ago; it was Porphyrion. Porphyrion looked at Jason bitterly and said, _I will have my revenge, son of Jupiter, and Olympus will come crashing down. You cannot stop me. _The lightning flashed so brightly that it nearly blinded Jason, then he woke in his bunk.

"Bad dream?" Reyna asked from her bunk on the other side of the small room.

Jason rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and asked Reyna, "Did I wake you?"

"You were talking in your sleep," she said.

"Oh, sorry."

"It's alright. I needed to get up anyway," she said.

They both put their boots on and headed up to the deck. When they reached the deck of the ship they noticed everyone was staring at the horizon. Annabeth was on the wheel deck holding a pair of binoculars to her eyes. She was glassing what appeared to be a storm in the eastern sky.

Jason walked over to her and asked, "What is it?"

Annabeth lowered the binoculars and turned to Jason, "I'm not exactly sure."

"Let me take a look," Jason said as he took the binoculars from Annabeth.

He glassed the horizon and saw what appeared to be two dark blue thunderheads, but there was something odd about them. They would move toward one another then move away then repeat the cycle. It was like the two storms were being pulled together then when they hit, they would bounce apart. The motions of the thunderheads seemed strangely familiar to Jason.

"Hey Leo, where exactly are we?" Jason asked still looking through the binoculars.

"We're coming up on the Med," Leo answered. "The Pillars of Hercules should be about where the storm is."

Jason lowered the binoculars and thought for a moment.

"The Pillars of Hercules," Jason muttered.

Annabeth looked at Jason and asked, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

Jason hesitated then said, "Cyaneae Insulae."

She nodded, "The Symplegades."

"The what?" Leo asked.

Piper, who was standing next to Leo, said, "The Clashing Rocks."

"But those are storm clouds, not rocks," Leo debated.

"They might as well be rocks," Jason said grimly. "If we get caught between them when they collide, the sheer force will crush this boat like an empty Coke can."

Leo didn't like the sound of that, but he trusted that Jason knew what he was talking about considering all his experience with winds and storms.

Leo shrugged his shoulders, "We'll just go around."

"It doesn't work that way," Annabeth said. "It will appear in our path no matter which course we take."

"Just like Charybdis and Scylla at the entrance of the Sea of Monsters," Percy remembered.

Annabeth nodded, "We have to go between them."

"The Pillars of Hercules, the entrance to the Mediterranean, the Sea of Monsters thousands of years ago," Jason said.

"What if we land and sail into the Med?" Leo asked.

"We'll probably get met with actual _clashing rocks_," Jason speculated.

"So, what do we do?" Leo asked.

"We fly between the clashing…um, thunderheads," Jason said then turned to Annabeth. "And Annabeth will guide us through."

"She will?" Leo asked in surprise.

Annabeth just stared at Jason, and he could tell she had a million things running through her brain.

"Athena's wisdom helped the original Argonauts make it through," Jason said then he smiled. "And I have a feeling that Annabeth could probably navigate the Alps in this thing from _below deck_ with nothing more than a stopwatch and a map."

"So you're saying it has to be timed just right?" Leo asked.

Jason nodded still looking at Annabeth.

Annabeth took a deep breath then turned to Leo, "Leo, slow her down and put her on autopilot. I'll need time to do my computations."

"Got it," Leo said. "What else?"

"I'll need a stopwatch, a notepad, and a pencil," she said.

She turned to Jason and held out her hand. He placed the binoculars in her hand and gave her a confident smile.

"Here's your stuff Annabeth," Leo said as he laid the items on the console.

Annabeth walked over to the console and flipped on the radar and GPS.

She scribbled some things onto the notepad then turned to Leo, "How fast will this thing go?"

"Seventy knots, and that's pegged out," Leo answered.

Annabeth scribbled on the paper some more then she turned to Percy, "I'm going to need your help."

"That's what I'm here for," he said as he walked over to her.

Annabeth gave him the pencil and said, "Each time I give you a mark, write down our exact coordinates."

"Okay," Percy said as he took the pencil and adjusted the GPS to give him their exact location.

Percy knew what Annabeth was going to do. He wasn't a math wiz by any means, but this was an old nautical formula that was somehow implanted into his brain: speed = distance/time.

Annabeth held the binoculars to her eyes with one hand and held the stopwatch with the other.

"Mark," she said as she pressed the button on the stopwatch.

"Two-seven-zero," Percy said as he wrote the coordinate down on the notepad.

Several seconds went by then she said, "Mark."

"Two-nine-two," Percy said writing the number down.

They repeated this process three times before Annabeth was satisfied that she had correct numbers for her formula. She took the pencil from Percy and began scribbling on her notepad. She would glance up at the GPS then down at the stopwatch then scribble some more. The paper was beginning to look like an algebra text book had thrown up on it.

Percy could tell she was getting frustrated then she slammed the pencil down on the notepad, "Dangit."

"What?" Percy asked a little surprised at her outburst.

She shook her head, "We won't be able to make it through…even at max speed. The ship is just too long."

"How much too long?" Percy asked with worry.

"Ten feet," Annabeth sighed.

"Ugh."

Annabeth put her hands on her head, "Agh…this is so frustrating."

Percy gripped Annabeth's wrists and pulled her hands down, "You can do this, Wise Girl. I know you can. Talk it out, maybe there's an alternative."

She wanted to yell at Percy, but he did have a point. Maybe there was something she was missing.

"Okay," she said in a calmer voice. "We either need more speed, less boat, or more time. Leo said seventy knots is all she would do, and I don't think he'd be too happy about chopping off ten feet of his ship."

"So, we need to figure out a way to buy us some more time once we're in," Percy deduced.

"And all I need is four seconds, if there was some way to stall the storms for four seconds we could…" Annabeth paused.

Percy could tell a light bulb was going off in her head when she began to smile.

"Jason!" Annabeth yelled.

Jason was at mid ship when he heard Annabeth calling his name. He turned to see her waving desperately at him to come to the helm.

Jason ran up to her and asked, "What's up?"

"How strong are you, Jason?" she asked.

"Um…" Jason muttered as he lifted his arm slightly and looked at his bicep. "I guess I'm…"

"I mean your powers," Annabeth interrupted. "Your ability to control winds."

"I can do some pretty intense stuff in short bursts," he said. "But I don't have the power to sustain control at that intensity for long."

"All I need is a few seconds," she said.

"A few seconds?" he asked with a bit of apprehension.

"I need you to stall the storms' movement once we're inside," Annabeth said. "Do you think you can do it?"

"I'm guessing this is our only option," Jason said.

Annabeth nodded.

"Then I guess I have to do it. How much time do you need?"

"Four seconds."

"Okay then, lets give it a shot," Jason said.

Annabeth called out to Leo, "Hey Leo, it's time."

Jason looked at Annabeth and said, "Good luck."

She nodded, "You, too."

Jason walked to mid ship and stood near the main mast as Leo made his way to the helm.

"Okay, navigator," Leo said to Annabeth. "What first?"

"Increase speed to fifty knots," she said looking at the GPS.

"Increasing speed," Leo said.

"On my mark, increase speed to seventy knots…three, two, one, mark."

"Increasing speed to seventy knots."

They were rapidly approaching the storms, and Percy could tell Annabeth was nervous. He put his hand on her shoulder to give her a boost of confidence.

She turned to him and said, "This is going to be close."

"When is it never close?" Percy asked.

"Approaching the storms," Leo said.

"Ten seconds," Annabeth said.

The storms were colliding, and if Annabeth's calculations were correct, they would enter as soon as the storms began to separate.

"We're going to hit it," Leo said with panic.

Annabeth ignored Leo and began the countdown, "Five, four, three, two, one…"

_CLANG_

The tip of the bow hit the storms before they had completely cleared a path ripping Festus' head from the ship and sending it tumbling toward the ocean below. The storms cleared a path in front of them at what seemed like the very last second as they flew right between them. They were about half way through when the storms began their collision course again. Jason prepared himself and stood ready to stall the storms.

"Wait for it, wait for it," Annabeth muttered.

They were three quarters of the way through when the storms began getting too close for comfort.

"Now!" Annabeth yelled to Jason.

Jason threw his arms out to his sides and held his hands up like he was giving each storm a signal to stop. He held his head down and his eyes were closed tightly. He felt an overwhelming tugging sensation in his gut. He began to breathe heavily and the sweat began to pour off him. He took a deep breath, threw his head up, and opened his eyes. His electric blue eyes sparked with energy and winds began to swirl across the deck violently. The plan was working. Jason was stalling the storms' movements. His arms began to tremble as they drew closer to the exit. The storms were still closing in on them, but at a slower rate. He just needed to hang on for two more seconds. The bow of the ship began making its way out when Jason collapsed. Still traveling at seventy knots the ship cleared the storms just as they collided, missing the ships stern by only inches. Everyone onboard breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Annabeth turned to Percy and hugged his neck.

"You did it," Percy smiled.

Annabeth smiled, but her smile quickly faded, "Jason."

Everyone ran over to Jason who was still lying on the deck. He was unconscious and smelled of singed hair and an electrical fire.

Reyna knelt beside him and touched his skin.

She immediately jerked her hand back, "Hot."

Piper knelt beside him and said, "Jason…Jason, wake up. Come on, wake up."

Jason's eyes began to flutter then they opened.

"Did we make it?" he asked.

Piper smiled, "Yeah, we made it."


	15. Chapter 15

15. On The Run

Jason was lying on a cot in the small infirmary below deck, and Piper was sitting on a stool next to him holding his hand. Reyna folded a cool, damp cloth and placed it on Jason's forehead.

"Feeling better?" Reyna asked him.

"Yeah," Jason said then grabbed Reyna's wrist before she walked away. "Thank you…again."

"I had nothing to do with it this time. It was all her," Reyna nodded toward Piper.

Jason, still gripping Reyna's wrist, smiled up at her. Reyna returned the smile, but Jason noticed there was something different in her eyes. That twinkle that she had reserved for him over the last several months was gone, and Jason knew then that things had changed for her.

"Get some rest," she said then she turned to Piper. "You'll make sure he rests?"

Piper nodded, and Reyna left Jason and Piper alone in the infirmary.

"Try to get some sleep, Jason," Piper said.

"You'll stay with me until I fall asleep?" Jason asked her.

"Of course," Piper smiled.

On deck, Percy was at the helm flying the Argo II over the Mediterranean. The deep blue water sparkled in the setting sun, and a warm sea breeze swirled on the deck. Leo sat on the deck at the bow leaning his back against the rail. His eyes were saddened, and he had a look of complete exhaustion. Annabeth noticed his look of woe so she walked over and sat down beside him.

"I'm sorry about Festus," Annabeth said sympathetically knowing how important it was to him.

"This is the second time I've lost that dragon," Leo sighed.

"Maybe you'll get it back someday."

"Maybe," Leo said halfheartedly.

"Let me tell you a story, Leo," Annabeth began. "A few years before the Trojan War, Jason, the original Jason, set out on a quest to find the Golden Fleece. He was joined by a band of heroes…"

"The Argonauts, aboard the Argo, I know the story," Leo interrupted.

"Did you know that when Jason and the Argonauts sailed through the Symplegades, the Argo was nearly crushed on exit and lost part of her stern ornament?"

"Really?" Leo asked in surprise.

Annabeth nodded, "So you see, when history tells this story of the Argo II and her Argonauts' journey to Greece and compares it to the voyage of the Argo, there will always be that commonality of a piece of the ship being lost to the Symplegades, and Festus will always be remembered for that."

Leo smiled at the thought of his dragon being remembered in history forever.

"Why don't you go grab a bite to eat and hit the hay," Annabeth suggested. "Percy and I will take first watch tonight."

"Thanks, Annabeth."

Annabeth smiled and nodded, and Leo slowly got up and walked below deck to turn in early.

Annabeth walked over to the helm and stood beside Percy. She faced the stern of the ship so she could watch the sunset.

"Did you cheer him up?" Percy asked her.

"I think so."

It was quiet between them for a moment then Percy said, "You did good today."

"It was a team effort," Annabeth said.

Percy shook his head, "Who would've ever thought that Greeks and Romans could work so well together?"

"You and Jason did an excellent job of bridging the gap. This alliance would've never happened without the leadership of you two."

Percy smiled, "I think you give us too much credit."

"I sometimes wonder if you get enough," Annabeth said. "I don't know if I've ever told you this, but I'm proud of you."

"Thank you, that means a lot."

Annabeth smiled and stared at the sunset, "It's so beautiful."

Percy never turned to look at the sunset; he only stared at Annabeth and said, "Yes, it is."

The crew rotated shifts throughout the night, and when the sun began to peek over the horizon the next morning, they had already traveled as far as Italy. Jason and Reyna were on watch duty as the sun came up. Reyna leaned against the port side railing, and she smiled as Italy came into view off the port bow. The boot was beautiful from the birds eye view and the sea sparkled around it.

"What I wouldn't give to visit Rome just once," Reyna said dreamily as she looked down at the homeland of her gods.

Jason just smiled at her from the helm.

"Good morning," Dakota said as he walked up onto the deck and stretched his arms.

"Good morning," Jason returned.

"Hey Kota, come here, you've got to see this," Reyna said as she waved him over.

Dakota walked over and leaned against the rail beside her.

"Oh, wow," Dakota said when he saw Italy. "That's incredible."

"Isn't it?" Reyna smiled.

"You guys want to stop?" Jason asked.

Reyna turned to Jason and asked, "What?"

"Do you want to make a pit stop on the boot?"

Reyna's eyes widened, "Seriously, we could stop in Rome?"

Jason shrugged his shoulders, "I don't see why not. We've made really good time since we left the Oracle's island, and we don't have to be in Greece for two more days. I think we could afford to stop for a few hours, that is, if everyone agrees."

"Oh my gods, oh my gods," Reyna squealed, and Dakota looked at her like she had gone nuts.

"Don't look at me like that," she said to Dakota. "You're excited, too."

"You're not excited. You're giddy," Dakota smiled, and Reyna just rolled her eyes.

Reyna turned back to the captivating view and gripped her forearm tightly where a raven and the letters SPQR were tattooed onto her skin.

It wasn't long before the rest of the crew emerged on deck.

"Hey, guys," Jason said to them. "We need to talk to you about something."

Everyone walked up to the wheel deck, and Percy asked, "What's up?"

"We were wondering how you guys might feel about making a brief detour," Jason said.

"A detour?" Leo asked.

"We'd like to stop in Rome for a few hours," Reyna explained.

It was awkwardly silent between them for a moment while everyone mulled the thought around in their head wondering if it was a good idea. Leo finally broke the silence.

"That's fine with me," Leo said noticing how much his Roman counterparts wanted to visit the land in which they served.

Annabeth was hesitant until she began thinking about the classical and imperial architecture and the ancient monuments and ruins. The architect inside Annabeth won over her caution and she said, "Yeah, let's stop."

"Percy? Piper?" Jason asked.

"We're ahead of schedule so, why not," Percy said.

Piper smiled, "I can smell the puttanesca already."

Reyna smiled, "We're going to Rome."

The three Roman demigods stood at the bow of the Argo II looking down upon their city. They were thrilled to be making this trip of a lifetime to Rome. Leo flew the Argo II around the outskirts of the city until he found an old, abandoned airstrip. Leo set up a short final and lowered the landing gear. He set the Argo II down on the runway for a perfect landing. Everyone disembarked the ship, and they began walking toward the city with Reyna and Annabeth leading the way.

"The Colosseum and the Pantheon," Reyna said to Annabeth as they walked side by side.

"Oh, and Trajen's Column and the Arch of Constantine," Annabeth added.

"The gardens."

"The architecture."

"The fountains."

"The statues."

Percy just shook his head listening to Annabeth and Reyna go on and on.

"How do we put up with that?" Percy asked Dakota.

Dakota laughed, "That's a good question."

"The food is all I'm interested in," Leo said with excitement. "I could tear some lasagna up right now."

"Me too, bro," Jason laughed.

"And a nice glass of Sangiovese," Piper said dreamily.

The guys turned to her with raised eyebrows, and Dakota asked, "You want a glass of wine?"

"What?" Piper shrugged her shoulders. "It's not like I'm going to be driving."

They continued on into the city, and it wasn't long before they found a restaurant they all agreed upon. They were seated at a table in the corner of the restaurant, and a waitress came over to their table and rattled off something in Italian; they looked at her blankly.

"Ah, Americans," she said with a thick Italian accent. "What can I get for you today?"

Everyone began placing their orders, and when she got around to Piper, she spoke to the waitress in Italian. The waitress gave Piper a pleasing smile and took down her order.

When the waitress left their table, Leo asked Piper, "You speak Italian, too?"

Piper shrugged her shoulders, "I guess so."

"_Hablas Espanol?"_ Leo asked Piper in Spanish.

"_Muy bien,"_ Piper replied.

"That's right," Leo nodded and smiled.

A few minutes later the waitress brought out their drinks: sodas, water, and a glass of red wine for Piper.

"You did not?" Annabeth gasped at Piper.

Piper just smiled and took a sip of her wine.

They sipped on their beverages and nibbled on breadsticks while discussing all of the sights they wanted to see, and it wasn't long before the waitress returned with their meals. They ate and talked and laughed like normal teenagers, like they could've been about to go catch a movie or were on vacation.

Leo was halfway through his lasagna when he noticed a painting hanging on the wall next to them.

Annabeth saw he was staring and said, "That's a di Vinci…a replica, of course."

"The Last Supper," Leo said recognizing the painting.

Everyone stopped eating and stared at the painting. It was quiet at the table for a moment as everyone began to realize this might be the last real meal they share together.

Piper took a pretty big gulp of her wine then broke the silence, "Okay guys, what are we going to see first?"

"The Colosseum," everyone said in unison.

"Predictable," Piper laughed. "The Colosseum it is."

They finished their meal, and everyone was all smiles at how delicious it was.

The waitress laid the check on the table and Leo asked, "Um, guys, how are we going to pay for this?

"I've got it," Dakota said as he pulled a Visa from his back pocket.

"That's a Legion debit card," Jason said with surprise.

"Yeah," Dakota smiled then turned to Leo. "Hazel slipped it to me before we left."

"Dude, you're not getting sweet on my girl, are you?" Leo teased.

Dakota grinned, "You better be wondering if your girl's getting sweet on me."

Leo shook his head, "Kiss my ass."

They paid the tab and left the restaurant heading for the Colosseum.

They walked the streets of Rome in awe of the history and beauty of the city. They walked under the Arch of Constantine as they approached the Colosseum then toured the arena's ruins with eyes of wonder and amazement. After their tour of the Colosseum, they visited Trajen's Market and circled Trajen's Column staring up at it while Annabeth and Reyna recited the story engraved upon it. After that, it was on to their next stop, the Pantheon. They stood outside the Pantheon staring for a moment before hiking up the temple's steps. Once they reached the portico, all seven of them instinctively dropped to one knee and bowed their heads. This was a place of worship…to all the gods. They toured the Pantheon then hit the streets of Rome again. Annabeth and Reyna walked almost arm in arm as they discussed the city's architecture and history. Jason and Piper walked together taking in the scenery and feeling the undeniable romance of the city. Percy, Leo, and Dakota trailed behind them joking and carrying on until Leo turned to Dakota with concern.

"Dude, I think we're being followed," Leo said.

"Eyes front," Dakota told him. "There are four of them. They've been trailing us for about half an hour now."

"Who?" Percy asked as he started to turn around to look behind them.

"Don't look," Dakota snapped. "Just act normal; you're a normal American tourist, okay?"

"Who is it, Dakota?" Leo asked. "Cops? They're not wearing uniforms."

"Not cops…not exactly," Dakota said.

Leo gasped, "CIA, FBI, KGB?"

"Dang, Leo, lay off the TV how 'bout it?" Dakota said shaking his head.

"Seriously though," Percy said. "Who are they?"

"The Swiss Guard," Dakota said.

"The…" Percy began.

"Oh, not good," Leo interrupted.

"Do you mean the Vatican police?" Percy asked.

"Yes," Leo and Dakota said simultaneously.

"Why would they be following us?"

"They know who we are, and they want us out of Rome," Dakota said. "Man, I should've thought about this before we even stopped, but it…it never even crossed my mind."

"Why do they want us out of Rome?" Percy asked. "What's the big deal about us being here?"

"About seventeen hundred years ago, when the gods left Rome and moved west, the Catholic Church took over the city. When it did, they exiled all of the demigods that were living in the city, almost drove them out of Italy entirely," Dakota explained.

"Demigods don't exactly fit in with their belief system," Leo said.

"The church considered demigods a threat to their religion, so they got rid of them," Dakota said.

"That's not fair to persecute someone for their faith just because they believe something different," Percy said.

"But it happens…all the time," Dakota told him. "And this is no exception."

"What do we do?" Leo asked Dakota.

"We need to get back to the ship as quickly and quietly as possible. If they think we're onto them they'll come after us. If they catch us they'll detain us, and we'll miss our deadline," Dakota said. "Leo, go tell Jason and Piper what's going on. Come on Percy, we'll go tell Reyna and Annabeth."

Percy and Dakota walked casually up to Annabeth and Reyna. Percy wrapped his arm over Annabeth's shoulders, and Dakota did the same to Reyna.

"Hey guys," Annabeth said with a smile. "We were just thinking about going into Vatican City next to tour the Sistine Chapel."

"Oh, no, no, no, no," Dakota said quickly.

"Why not?" Reyna complained. "And why is your arm around me?"

Reyna tried to wiggle away from Dakota.

"Stop squirming," Dakota snapped. "Just act normal."

"Your arm around me is not normal."

"Well, pretend it is."

"What's going on, guys?" Annabeth asked with concern.

"We're being followed," Percy told her.

"By whom?"

"Swiss Guard," Dakota said.

"Oh, this is bad," Reyna said.

"Uh, oh," Dakota muttered.

"What?" Percy asked.

"Two more, three o'clock and nine o'clock."

"How many behind us?" Annabeth asked.

"Four," Dakota answered.

At that time, Leo, Jason, and Piper walked up to them, and they all walked down the sidewalk as casually as they could.

"They know something's up," Dakota said.

"How do you know?" Reyna asked.

"That's how," Dakota said pointing toward a man in a suit running toward them from their left.

They looked around and noticed all six of the men who were following them were now running toward them.

"What now?" Piper asked.

"Run!" Dakota yelled, and they took off sprinting down the sidewalk.

Reyna looked back at their pursuers and yelled, "They have guns!"

"Surely they wouldn't shoot at…" Leo started.

_POP POP POP_

The sound of gunfire and whizzing bullets filled the air.

"They're shooting at us!" Leo yelled.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Reyna said with sarcasm.

More shots rang out and Jason yelled, "Run faster!"

They ran down sidewalks, cut through gardens and alleyways, and crossed busy streets, anything to try to shake their pursuers, but the Swiss Guard just kept coming.

"This way, guys!" Piper yelled as she pointed down a street lined with parked cars. "I have an idea."

They ran down the sidewalk then followed Piper across the busy street. Everyone had made it across the street except for Percy, when a car horn blared. Percy leaped to avoid getting hit by the car, and did a Bo Duke style hood slide across the car as the driver cursed in Italian out the window and flipped Percy the bird. They desperately tried to keep up with Piper who was sprinting toward a woman who was getting out of her silver SUV.

Piper ran up to the woman and asked, "Ma'am, can I borrow your keys?"

The woman just stared at Piper blankly.

"Oh right, Italian," Piper said catching her breath.

Piper rattled off something in Italian to the woman, and she hesitantly gave her keys to Piper.

"_Gracias,"_ Piper said to her.

"That's Spanish," Leo informed her.

"Who cares, just get in!" Piper yelled.

Everyone began to climb into the SUV. Piper got in the drivers seat and immediately started the engine. Dakota got into the front passenger seat, and Reyna, Jason, and Leo began to pile into the back seats. Percy opened the rear passenger door, and Annabeth was about to climb in when there was another round of shots.

_POP POP POP CRASH_

The rear passenger door's window shattered into pieces as blood splattered into Percy's face. He was stunned for a second, then he looked up at Annabeth who was standing right in front of the shattered window. Her face, which had been perfectly tanned, was now pale white, and her stormy gray eyes had turned so light they almost looked blue. Annabeth looked down at her left shoulder which was now covered in blood. She looked back up at Percy, and his heart stopped cold in his chest.

"Perc-," she started faintly then collapsed.

Percy caught her, "Annabeth…Annabeth! Oh my gods, you've been shot. Annabeth's been shot! Reyna!"

"Get her in the car, Percy!" Reyna yelled at him.

Percy stood outside the car, frozen, holding an unconscious and bleeding Annabeth in his arms.

"Stay with me, Annabeth. Stay with me," Percy pleaded.

"Percy, get in the car!" Dakota yelled as more shots were being fired from the quickly approaching Swiss Guard.

Jason and Reyna grabbed Annabeth out of Percy's arms and pulled her into the SUV. Bullets pelted the car, but Percy still stood outside the door frozen and stunned.

"Percy!" Piper screamed shaking him from his daze. "Get in the damn car!"

Percy climbed in and shut the door behind him. Piper, who already had the engine revved up, dumped the clutch and peeled out of the parking space and down the street. She shifted through the gears and swerved left and right around traffic.

Percy climbed into the third row seat where Annabeth and Reyna were. Percy sat down and laid Annabeth's head on his lap.

"You have to help her, Reyna," Percy said desperately as he fought back tears.

"I'm going to, Percy," Reyna assured him.

Reyna ripped Annabeth's shirt so she could get a clear view of the wound, and she lifted Annabeth's shoulder to look at her back.

"Her vitals are stable, and it's a through and through," she said then looked up at Percy. "It's not bad, Percy. She's lucky."

Annabeth's eyes fluttered open, and she muttered, "Percy."

"I'm right here," he said as he brushed her hair out of her face. "You're going to be okay."

"Percy, hold her hand because this is going to hurt," Reyna said.

Percy held Annabeth's right hand with his and gently touched her forehead with his left.

"Annabeth, this isn't going to be pleasant, but it will only last for a few seconds," Reyna warned.

"Okay," Annabeth nodded.

"Alright," Reyna said. "On the count of three: one…"

"Aaagggghhhhh!" Annabeth screamed as Reyna clutched her hand over the bleeding gunshot wound.

Annabeth continued to scream as tears rolled down her face. She squeezed Percy's hand, and he was absolutely horrified to see her in so much pain. Reyna was breathing heavily and sweating as her touch healed Annabeth's wound. Annabeth finally passed out from the pain, and a few seconds later, Reyna removed her hand. All that was left of the gaping bullet hole was a pink scar and dried blood.

Suddenly, everyone was being tossed about the car as Piper began to swerve again.

"We've got company!" Piper yelled as the two cars she swerved to avoid turned to follow them.

Sirens blared and red lights flashed from the black sedans that were now pursuing them. Soon two other black sedans joined the pursuit. Piper sped through the city swerving around traffic and pedestrians. She turned down side streets and cut through parking lots to try to outrun their pursuers.

"You and Bobby go to the same driving school?" Dakota asked Piper.

Piper turned to him, "What?"

"Lookout!"

Piper swerved to miss a car causing her to make a hard right down a side street.

"I'm pretty sure that sign meant do not enter," Dakota said as he held on for dear life.

Piper swerved to miss the oncoming traffic, and when she reached the end of the side street, she made a hard left onto the main street. She shifted through the gears and increased speed as she swerved through traffic.

Leo leaned toward the front seat and gripped Piper's headrest, "Piper, should you be driving?"

"What?" she yelled offended that he would even ask such a question.

"Well, you did have that wine," Leo reminded her.

"Leo, it was one glass of wine, and that was over three hours ago," she said.

"Yeah, but…"

"Do you want to drive?" Piper snapped.

"Uh, um…" Leo stuttered.

Piper looked back at Leo and took her hands off the steering wheel, "Do you want to drive?"

Dakota quickly grabbed the wheel while Piper argued with Leo.

"No, no, you're doing just fine," Leo said in panic.

"Then shut-up," Piper said as she put her hands back on the wheel. "Backseat driver."

Reyna tried to regain her composure, but was having difficulty as she was being tossed around the car. She was terribly flushed and her eyes were heavy.

"Are you okay?" Jason asked her.

"Yeah, I think…I…ugh…" Reyna muttered then covered her mouth with her hand.

"I think she's going to spew!" Leo yelled.

Reyna didn't puke, but she did pass out. Reyna and Annabeth were now both passed out in the third row seat. Percy looked out the back window of the SUV to see a black sedan pull out of a side street right behind them.

_POP POP_

"Get down!" Percy yelled as the back window took a round and shattered.

Percy climbed out of the third row seat into the second row between Jason and Leo. Percy looked out the left window and did a double take. The Tiber River was only about a quarter of a mile away.

"Piper, the river!" Percy yelled.

"I got you, I got you," she said understanding what he wanted her to do.

Piper took the next left onto a road that ran right alongside the river.

"Dakota, moon roof!" Percy yelled.

Dakota hit a button and the moon roof began opening.

"What are you doing?" Jason asked Percy as he began to stand up on the center console.

"Pulling a Reyna!"

"Say what?" Jason asked in confusion.

Dakota turned to Jason and said, "Long story."

Percy stood on the center console and stuck his upper body out of the SUV through the moon roof. Shots were being fired at Percy, but if the rounds were hitting him, he didn't know it. Percy extended both arms toward the river and closed his eyes in concentration. The river began to swell into an enormous tidal wave that followed them as they drove alongside. Percy opened his eyes which were filled with contempt and rage. He clutched his fists like he was grabbing the wave then he thrust both arms toward the five cars that were in hot pursuit. The wave in the river obeyed his command slamming into the cars with so much force that it washed them off the road sending them barrel rolling down the ditch on the other side.

"Yeah, Percy!" Leo yelled in excitement.

Percy stumbled as he tried to get his entire body back into the car.

"Percy, man, are you okay?' Dakota asked as he tried to steady him.

"Yeah…I…um…" Percy stuttered.

"He's going to pass out," Jason warned.

"Oh, shi-," Dakota gasped as Percy collapsed on top of him. "Guys, get him off of me and into the back."

Leo and Jason grabbed Percy and pulled him into the backseat.

"Some of you need to learn how to conserve your energy when you use your powers," Dakota said.

"Well, what's your special power, Dakota? Other than getting eaten by snakes," Piper asked with sarcasm.

Dakota turned to Piper, "Hey, I killed it and survived, didn't I? And I didn't even pass out."

"Is that all you got?" Piper teased.

"You want to see one of my powers?" Dakota asked her.

"Yes, I'd love to."

"Fine, then take the next right."

"What?"

"Right here, turn right," Dakota pointed toward a street to the right and Piper turned.

"Now, three blocks up, take a left," he told her.

Piper followed Dakota's directions through a few more turns, and within minutes they were at the airstrip where the Argo II was parked. Piper stopped the car and shut off the engine.

She looked at Dakota with surprise and asked, "How did you…"

"Honey, Rome is an ancient battleground. I know where everything is," he smiled. "Now, come on, let's get these lightweights onboard the ship."

Leo grabbed Annabeth, Jason grabbed Reyna, and Dakota threw Percy over his shoulder, and they carried them onto the ship. They took them down to the sleeping quarters and laid them in their bunks. Jason and Leo went back up to the deck to prepare for takeoff while Piper and Dakota got everyone settled in their bunks.

"I think their alright," Piper whispered to Dakota. "They just need to sleep."

As Piper was leaving the sleeping quarters, Dakota walked over to Reyna's bunk.

He leaned down and kissed her forehead then whispered, "You did good, lightweight."

Dakota walked out of the sleeping quarters and saw Piper about to walk up onto the deck.

"Hey, Piper," he called.

She turned to him and said, "Yeah."

"That was some skilled driving back there," he smiled. "Stolen a car or two in your day, huh?"

She smiled, "Maybe."

"So much for sweet and innocent."

"Whoever said I was sweet and innocent," she winked.

**AN: My apologies if the religious content of this chapter offended anyone. I assure you that was not my intent.**

**-dmac**


	16. Chapter 16

16. Dawn Of The Dead

Nico stared at his clock which read: 12:02. In a few short hours, he, Rachel, Thalia, and Hazel would begin their quest in the Underworld. Nico looked away from the clock and out his cabin window. The night was as dark as any he'd ever seen at Camp Half-Blood. He knew he needed to sleep, but he had so much on his mind that sleep seemed impossible. He lied down on his bed anyway thinking if he could relax he might be able to get at least a couple of hours of sleep before he had to meet the girls in the forest near bunker 9 at six a.m. He no more than got the covers pulled over him though, when he heard a faint knock on his cabin door. Nico got out of bed and walked over to the door. He opened the door slightly and saw Rachel standing there.

"Sorry, I know it's late," Rachel said to Nico.

Nico opened the door wider and asked, "You couldn't sleep either?"

Rachel sighed and shook her head.

Nico motioned her to come in and closed the door behind her. She looked around Nico's cabin barely able to see because it was so dark, but she noticed his cabin was relatively small and very simple: a dresser, a nightstand with a clock and a dimly lit lamp, and one bed.

"Well," Nico said. "I'd offer you a chair, but as you can see, I have no furniture."

"Oh, that's alright," Rachel said.

"Here, you can sit down on the bed," Nico offered. "It's not like I was getting any sleep anyway."

Rachel sat down on the edge of the bed, and Nico sat down next to her.

"So, what's on your mind?" Nico asked her.

"The same thing that's keeping you awake," Rachel told him.

Nico nodded, "Big day tomorrow."

"Big? More like huge. We're going to the Underworld, which I know isn't a big deal for you, but…" Rachel paused hoping for some reassurance from Nico.

Even though Nico was a few years younger than Rachel, he didn't seem like it. Nico had matured so much since coming to Camp Half-Blood, and it probably has a lot to do with everything the kid's been through: child of Hades, sister's death, betrayal, alliance, war… Nico had dealt with some pretty grown-up stuff over the past two years, and it forced him to grow up…far too quickly.

"Don't worry, you'll do fine," Nico tried to reassure her. "I'm the one who should be worried. This is my quest, and if it goes bad, it's on me."

Nico noticed Rachel now looked even more concerned, so he quickly added, "But I'm sure it won't go badly. We'll just go down there and get the job done."

Rachel shook her head, "I don't know why I'm so anxious and nervous. I mean, you half-bloods go on quests all the time. I'm sure Thalia and Hazel aren't losing any sleep right now."

Nico grinned, "No, they're probably dead to the world…no pun intended, but they've been on quests and fought in battles. I mean, look at Thalia. She pretty much lives on a full-time quest, and Hazel has been fighting monsters since she was knee-high to a grasshopper. This is your first real quest. I know you led the way through the Labyrinth, and you were there during the Titan War, and you've seen what it's all about, but seeing it and actually doing it are two totally different things. The Titan War was my first major battle, my only battle really, and this is my first quest. I'll admit I'm nervous, too. That's why I can't sleep."

Rachel wasn't quite sure if Nico's candor made her feel better of worse, but it did make her feel no so alone anymore.

"Ugh," Rachel muttered as she flopped her back down on the bed.

She stared at the black ceiling and twitched her legs nervously as they dangled off the bed.

Nico leaned over toward her and smiled, "Some of that demigod ADHD is rubbing off on you, huh?"

Rachel cracked a slight smile, but didn't say anything. She just continued to stare at the ceiling and twitch her legs.

"Used to," Nico started. "When I couldn't sleep, Bianca would tell me stuff."

Rachel turned her head toward Nico and asked, "What, like bedtime stories?"

"Not exactly, she would tell me stuff that was so boring that I'd rather sleep than listen to her. She would say a random word then spell it or go through the multiplication tables, she's even used food recipes to put me to sleep, and I'm not talking about cookie recipes; it was nasty stuff like spinach and artichoke dip and broccoli and rice casserole and…" Nico paused like he was just remembering that his sister was no longer with him.

Rachel turned on her side and propped herself up on her elbow, "I'm sorry about Bianca. I know you miss her."

"More than words can describe," Nico sighed. "She was my whole family."

"Do you ever get to see her when you're in the Underworld?"

Nico shook his head, "She's in Elysium, and I rarely go to the Elysium Fields. Seeing the faces of the dead is a lot harder than you might think, especially seeing those you knew and loved."

Nico flopped his back down on the bed like Rachel had and stared up at the ceiling. Rachel rolled over onto her back again and joined Nico in staring at the ceiling.

"We're going to be alright, right Nico?"

"You're the seer, you tell me."

Rachel took a deep breath and said, "I just don't know."

They stared at the ceiling in complete silence, and it wasn't long before they were both asleep.

Nico woke to his alarm clock blaring at 5:30 a.m. He looked over to see if Rachel was awake, but she was gone. Nico turned his alarm off and began strapping on his armor. At about ten minutes until six, Nico stepped out of his cabin dressed in full battle armor with his sword strapped to his side and his shield strapped to his back. It was still fairly dark out, but the sun was beginning to rise. Nico slung a full pack over his shoulder and began walking toward bunker 9.

When he was about to enter the forest he was startled by a voice, "Going somewhere?"

Nico turned to see Chiron standing at the tree line.

"I know about your quest, Nico," Chiron said.

"How?" Nico asked. "Who told you?"

Chiron pulled a slip of paper from his shirt pocket and said, "Hazel left me a note. She didn't expect me to find it before you left. She wanted to make sure everyone, especially Leo, knew what had happened if anything went wrong."

Nico nodded understanding Hazel's position.

"You didn't have to hide this from me, Nico. This is your quest, and I wouldn't have stopped you from going."

"That's not why we didn't tell you," Nico said.

"I know," Chiron said simply.

Chiron had been training heroes long enough to know the reasoning behind every demigods decisions.

"Good luck on your quest, Nico di Angelo."

"Thank you, sir," Nico nodded.

Chiron watched Nico walk into the forest knowing the enormous weight that rested upon that young man's shoulders.

Nico arrived at the meeting place where the girls, who were also dressed for battle, were already there waiting on him.

"Am I late?" Nico asked.

"No, we're early," Hazel said.

Nico pulled the silver tube-shaped dog whistle that belonged to Percy from his pocket. He put the whistle to his lips and blew into it.

_WOOF!_

Mrs. O'Leary came bouncing up to them with her tail wagging.

"Hey girl," Nico said as he scratched her ear. "Ready to take a trip?"

Everyone climbed onto Mrs. O'Leary's back, and Nico leaned forward whispering into her ear. The hellhound sniffed the air, took off running, and then disappeared. They reappeared inside a dark courtyard dotted with stone statues, precious jewels, and gardens of poisonous shrubs and mushrooms. Pomegranate trees grew in the center of the courtyard and the smell of the blooms was intoxicating.

"What is this place?" Rachel asked as they all slid off of Mrs. O'Leary's back.

"My step-mothers garden," Nico said bitterly. "Come on, follow me."

They followed Nico through the garden of Persephone toward the outer walls of the fortress. They stood at the two-story tall fortress gates which were covered in engravings of horrible scenes of torture and death.

Hazel's voice was quiet, but serious when she said, "The Doors of Death."

The gates swung open and Nico turned to the girls, "Let's go rally the troops."

They followed Nico through the Fields of Asphodel which were completely empty.

"Shouldn't this place be full of souls?" Thalia asked.

"It should be," Nico confirmed.

"Where are they?" Rachel asked.

Nico shook his head, "I don't know."

Asphodel was dark and quiet, and a cold breeze whipped across the fields.

"Tartarus is growing restless," Nico said looking back toward a cave where the cold winds seemed to originate from.

They could see the Fields of Punishment in the distance. Columns of smoke rose from the valley, and they would occasionally hear a howl or scream from that direction as well as feel the ground shake.

"The damned are rising up. It's only a matter of time until they escape," Nico warned.

They looked nervously toward the Fields of Punishment as they continued to follow Nico through Asphodel. They walked for what seemed like hours until they reached the gates of Elysium.

"You must prepare yourselves for what you're about to see," Nico told them. "Seeing the dead here in Elysium is different from seeing a ghost. When ghosts of the dead are summoned to the outside world, only part of their spirit makes the trip making it easier for the living to handle. Here, it's the real deal, the whole package, the full embodiment of their spirit. The deeper you cared for them when they were living, the harder it will be for you when you see their spirit. The faces of the dead will stir emotions inside you that you didn't even know you had. If you begin to feel overwhelmed, turn away, don't look at them, understand?"

Everyone nodded.

Nico opened the gates, and they all immediately smelled smoke.

"It's beginning, the burning has already started," Nico said grimly.

"Can we stop it?" Hazel asked.

"If we can stop the cause," Nico answered.

"Do you know what's causing it?" Rachel asked.

"It's burning from the bottom up. Tartarus is causing all of this: the empty Asphodel Fields, the uprising in the Fields of Punishment, and the burning of Elysium."

Everyone was quiet as they followed Nico into Elysium. The place was beautiful except for the smell of smoke and the occasional fire. The dead were all around them, but didn't seem to pay any attention to the living. They saw the faces of the dead, but unlike Nico said, their faces invoked no real emotional response, that is, until Thalia caught a glimpse of a face she recognized. Thalia gasped as her heart leaped into her throat. She tried to breathe, but she felt like she was being suffocated. Her heart raced and her stomach turned summersaults. Tears began streaming down Thalia's face as Luke Castellan walked toward her. Thalia remembered what Nico said about being overwhelmed so she closed her eyes, and instantly she was able to catch her breath. Thalia could feel Luke's presence, and she slowly peeked her eyes open. The emotions attacking Thalia were still there, just not quite as vicious as they had been initially. Thalia stared at Luke's spirit through her tears. He was beautiful; he looked healthy, strong, and happy. The scar on his cheek was gone, and he smiled at Thalia with that cheesy grin that he had always given her years before things went bad. Thalia tried to form words, but couldn't because of the huge lump in her throat. Instead, Luke spoke first, and what he said caught Thalia a little off guard.

"I'm sorry, Thalia. I never got to tell you that, and I never got to say goodbye to you."

The tears just kept streaming down Thalia's face, but she was finally able to speak, "I forgive you, Luke."

She wiped the tears from her eyes and continued to stare at him. The longer she looked at Luke, the easier it got.

Suddenly, Thalia blurted out, "I thought you were going to try for rebirth?"

Luke laughed, happy to see the old Thalia back as she began to get her emotions under control.

"It's a work in progress," Luke smiled. "There's a long waiting list, isn't that right, Nico?"

"It's true," Nico said.

"So, please tell me you guys are down here to get Tartarus under control," Luke said.

They explained to Luke about the Great Prophecy and how Percy and the others were journeying to Greece to face the giants and how Nico had received a quest to regain control of the Underworld.

"Sounds like you guys could use some help," Luke said.

Nico nodded, "That's why we're here."

"Then follow me," Luke said, and they began to follow Luke through Elysium.

"Where are we going?" Thalia asked him.

"To recruit some help."

They followed Luke into an enormous courtyard surrounded by cabins and villas. It resembled the courtyard between the cabins at Camp Half-Blood, just much larger. Hundreds of happy teenagers dotted the courtyard. Laughter filled the air as did an incredible sense of well being, though, there was also an unsettling tension that no doubt was due to the fact that Elysium was beginning to burn.

"Hey guys!" Luke yelled to the souls in the courtyard.

Luke whistled loudly to get their attention, and the laughter and chatter ceased.

"We've got visitors," Luke announced, and the dead began walking toward them.

The emotions attacking Hazel, Rachel, Thalia, and even Nico were almost unbearable as they began to see the faces of so many of the friends they had lost. They were breathless and speechless, and their eyes welled with tears as they stood face to face with the spirits of Bianca di Angelo, Charles Beckendorf, Selena Beauregard, Zoë Nightshade, and so many other heroes, Greek, Roman, and mortal, that had lost their lives fighting the fight.

"Guys," Luke announced to the spirits. "Some of you may know our living guests, but for those of you who don't, this is Nico di Angelo, son of Hades, Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus, Hazel Vaughn, daughter of Vesta, and Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Oracle of Delphi. They've come on a quest to regain control of the Underworld and stop Tartarus from destroying Elysium and wreaking havoc. They need our help. The Fields of Punishment are crumbling and soon there will be upheaval. The battle lines have been drawn; all they need is an army. So, what do you say, guys? You want to be heroes just one more time?"

The crowd of spirits erupted with cheers. Luke turned to Thalia with a fist pump and a wink, and Thalia smiled for the first time since their arrival in the Underworld.


	17. Chapter 17

17. Dark Spot On The Map

Final Chapter

Percy opened his eyes and noticed he was lying on his bunk in the sleeping quarters. He thought for a moment that maybe the little escapade in Rome was just a dream until he looked over and saw Annabeth lying in her bunk across the room. Percy's heart skipped a beat when he saw the dried blood caked in her blonde curls and her torn, bloodstained shirt. He climbed out of his bunk and walked over to Annabeth who was still asleep. He sat down on the edge of her bunk and gently brushed her hair out of her face. She gasped and opened her eyes.

"Percy."

"Right here," he assured her. "Sorry I woke you."

She turned to Percy and noticed the bloodstains on his clothes, "What happened?"

"You don't remember?" Percy asked.

"I remember we were being chased," she said as she sat up.

She looked down at her left shoulder where her shirt was torn and a small white scar dotted her skin, "I got shot."

"Yeah, you did," Percy nodded. "You scared the crap out of me."

"Did anyone else get hurt?"

"Reyna and I …we got a little woozy, but other than that, everyone's fine."

"Reyna, she saved me," Annabeth remembered.

"She healed the bullet wound," Percy nodded then smiled. "That girl's good."

Annabeth raised an eyebrow and grinned, "You got a crush?"

"Only on you," Percy smiled then kissed her forehead.

Dakota leaned against the girl's bathroom door, "Reyna."

"Go away, Kota," she grumbled from inside the bathroom.

"Come on, at least drink some nectar. It will settle your stomach," Dakota told her.

Piper walked up to Dakota and asked, "What's going on?"

"Reyna's sick," Dakota answered.

"Sick?"

"When she heals major injuries, sometimes it makes her nauseous," Dakota explained.

"Oh, I see," Piper nodded.

"Who are you talking to?" Reyna yelled to Dakota.

"None of your business," he answered.

"It is if you're talking about me."

"You guys crack me up," Piper giggled. "Why'd you two break-up anyway?"

"Because I'm an idiot or so Reyna says."

"Well, if you broke-up with her, you are an idiot."

"Thanks, Piper," Dakota said sarcastically.

"No, seriously though, her feelings for you run _so_ deep, granted they're not always good feelings, but they're intense none the less, just like yours toward her."

"How would you know?" Dakota asked.

"Hello…daughter of Aphrodite."

"Oh, right. Well, daughter of Aphrodite, got any words of wisdom for me?"

Piper smiled, "Keep at it and don't give up on her. She'll come around."

"I don't know. She's pretty stubborn." Dakota said.

"I'm not stubborn," Reyna yelled from inside the bathroom.

"Are you eves dropping?" Dakota asked Reyna.

"These walls aren't exactly thick, you know? Unlike your head."

"See," Piper smiled. "Deep feelings."

"Yeah, a deep feeling of annoyance," Dakota grumbled.

"Yeah…" Piper patted his shoulder. "Good luck with that."

"Block, thrust, slice…" Jason instructed Leo as they practiced sword fighting on the deck of the ship. "Again."

"Dude, I think I'm getting better," Leo smiled then his sword hit the deck. "Maybe not."

Jason laughed and picked Leo's sword up off the deck.

"Try again," Jason said as he handed Leo his sword. "Block, thrust, slice."

"Hey guys," Piper said as he walked up onto the deck.

Jason looked toward her then his sword hit the deck.

"Woo!" Leo yelled excitedly. "I did it!"

"I was distracted," Jason said.

Leo looked toward Piper and said, "I bet you were."

"Um…who's flying the ship?" Piper asked noticing no one was at the helm.

"Autopilot," Leo told her.

"Are we getting close?"

The smile faded from Leo's face, "We'll be there late this afternoon. It's time to start getting ready."

Piper looked like she wanted to say something, but the words wouldn't quite come out. She took a deep breath then turned and walked back down below deck.

Leo turned to Jason, "Well, don't just stand there. Go see if she's okay."

"Right," Jason said then ran to catch up with her.

"Piper, hey Piper!" Jason called after her.

Jason ran below deck and caught up with her in the cargo hold. He put his hand on her shoulder, and she stopped in her tracks.

"Piper."

She turned around and without thinking put her hand on the back of Jason's neck pulling him into a kiss. When her mind wrapped around what she was doing, she pulled away from him.

She cupped her hand over her mouth and gasped, "I'm sorry."

Jason's eyes were wide, and he managed to mutter, "Um…that's alright."

Piper cracked a smile then began to laugh, and Jason joined in her laughter.

When their laughing fit was over, Jason smiled at her, "Better now?"

Piper just smiled and nodded.

In the sleeping quarters, Annabeth began getting out of her bunk.

"I need a shower," she said as she picked her pack up off the floor.

Percy looked down at himself and said, "Yeah, I could use one, too."

Percy grabbed his pack, and he and Annabeth walked toward the bathrooms. When they got there, Dakota was standing in the hall.

"Hey guys," Dakota said when he saw Percy and Annabeth.

"Hey, Dakota," Annabeth smiled.

"You all better?" Dakota asked her.

"Good as new," Annabeth said as she flexed her arm to show him.

"Hey, Reyna's in there. Will you make sure she drinks a little of this?" Dakota asked as he handed Annabeth a canteen of nectar.

"Sure," she said as she took the canteen from Dakota then walked into the bathroom.

"Is Reyna alright?" Percy asked Dakota.

"She'll be fine."

"Good," Percy nodded then began to walk into the bathroom.

"Hey Percy," Dakota said.

Percy turned to Dakota and said, "Yeah."

"About eight hours, man,"

Percy nodded knowing he meant eight hours until they made it to Greece then he walked into the bathroom.

Reyna was sitting on the floor in one of the toilet stalls with her arms resting across her bent knees and her back leaning against the stall wall.

"You alright?" Annabeth asked when she saw Reyna sitting there.

"Did Kota send you in here?" Reyna asked.

"No, but he did send this," Annabeth said handing Reyna the canteen of nectar.

Reyna cracked a grin and took the canteen.

"He worries about you, you know?" Annabeth said.

Reyna took a sip of the nectar then said, "Yeah, I know."

She took another sip then got up off the floor.

"How's your shoulder?" Reyna asked.

"Its fine, thanks to you," Annabeth said showing Reyna the small scar. "You saved my life…thank you."

Reyna smiled, "Anytime."

Dakota walked through the hallway and into the armory. He pulled his black leather armor off a shelf and ran his hand across the smooth surface of the back plate. Leather armor offered less protection than bronze or steel, but what it did offer was increased maneuverability and range of motion which Dakota saw as an advantage over protection. He laid his armor down on the table in the armory and caught a glimpse of purple and orange out of the corner of his eye. It was scraps of fabric from the ships sails. He walked over and examined the sheets of the super strong Kevlar and carbon fiber blended material.

"That might work," he said to himself as he carried the scraps of fabric over to the table where his armor lay.

Leo sat on the wheel deck steps running a sharpening stone over the edges of his sword when Dakota ran up onto the deck.

"Hey Leo, you got a rivet gun in that tool belt of yours?" Dakota asked.

"A rivet gun?"

"Yeah, and some rivets, small ones."

Leo dug around in his tool belt and pulled out a hand-held rivet gun and a box of small silver rivets.

Leo handed them to Dakota and asked, "What are you doing?"

"I'll show you when I'm done," Dakota said then ran back down below deck.

"Okay…I guess I'll see when he's done," Leo said to himself then went back to sharpening his sword.

Jason and Piper walked back onto the deck, and when Leo saw them he yelled, "Hey Jason, keep watch!"

Jason and Piper watched as Leo ran toward the steps leading below deck.

"I wonder where he's going in such a hurry," Piper said as Leo disappeared below deck.

Jason shrugged his shoulders, "When you got to go, you got to go."

Leo ran through the ship until he found Dakota in the armory.

"Okay man, you've done stirred my curiosity," Leo said as he walked over to the table where Dakota was.

Dakota laughed as he continued to rivet a sheet of scrap sail onto the inside of his leather armor, "Its a little added protection that won't impede my range of motion."

"That's a good idea, Dakota. And it looks sharp with those silver rivets," Leo said as he looked over the new lining in Dakota's armor. "It'll be like a bullet proof vest."

"That's what I'm hoping," Dakota agreed.

"Oh hey, do you know if Percy's up?" Leo asked.

"Yeah, he's up. I think he was about to shower when I saw him. Why?"

"I gotta go rag him for passing out yesterday," Leo grinned then turned to walk out of the armory and saw Reyna standing at the doorway.

"Hey, Reyna," Leo said.

Dakota looked up from the table.

"I'll see you guys later," Leo winked at Dakota then walked passed Reyna out of the armory.

Reyna tossed the canteen of nectar to Dakota, and he caught it. She walked over to the table and sat on a stool opposite Dakota.

She examined his newly refitted shin guards and said, "Nice touch."

"You like it?" he asked then went back to work riveting.

"Yeah…It might end up saving your life," she said.

Reyna sat quietly fiddling with rivets strewn about the table while Dakota worked. Every once in a while she would take a breath like she was about to say something, but she never did.

"Whatever it is you want to say, you might as well just say it," Dakota said without looking up.

Reyna hesitated for a moment then finally said, "I appreciate that you worry about me, but you don't have to."

"You act like I have a choice in the matter," he said still not looking up at her. "I don't worry about you because I think you can't take care of yourself. I worry because I care."

Reyna sat quietly putting stray rivets back into the box.

Dakota stopped what he was doing and looked up at her, "Do you remember the first time you used your healing powers?"

"Like it was yesterday."

Dakota cracked a smile, "You got so sick."

Reyna was still fiddling with the rivets when she grumbled, "Cut me some slack, I was six."

"And what did I tell you then?"

Reyna smiled and looked up at Dakota, "You said you'd always be there to hold my hair back."

"And I meant it."

Reyna hesitated for a moment then asked, "When did things get so complicated between us?"

"Twelve years ago," Dakota smiled. "The very first day we met."

Reyna laughed, "That sounds about right."

Reyna got off the stool and began to walk out of the armory then she turned back to Dakota, "Hey Kota, take care of yourself out there."

"You, too," he nodded then watched Reyna walk out of the armory.

Percy walked out of the bathroom and met Reyna in the hallway, "Hey Reyna, feeling better?"

"Yeah," she smiled.

"Thank you…for saving Annabeth's life," Percy said then he took a deep breath. "I don't know what I would've done if she…"

"Hey, don't think like that. She's fine." Reyna said. "She's lucky to have you, someone who cares for her and loves her like you do."

"I think I'm the luck one," Percy smiled as Annabeth walked out of the bathroom behind them.

Reyna smiled as she saw Annabeth and said to Percy, "Yeah, you're probably right."

Reyna walked down the hallway leaving Percy and Annabeth alone.

"What was that all about?" Annabeth asked Percy.

"I was just thanking her for…you know," Percy answered. "Annabeth, I don't know what's going to happen when we get there, and I don't know how bad this fight is going to be. I just want you to know…"

"I know," she interrupted.

Percy nodded, "We'd better start getting ready. We'll be in Greece in a few hours."

Leo was in the cargo hold strapping on his armor when Jason walked down from the deck.

"Hey, bro," Leo said to Jason. "Who's on watch?"

"Piper and Reyna are on deck," Jason answered.

"Alone? Are you sure that's a good idea?" Leo asked.

Jason smiled, "I think they're getting along a little better now."

"That's good, I guess," Leo said. "Oh, hey, I got something for you."

"Oh, yeah?" Jason asked as Leo pulled a box from a shelf and handed it to Jason.

Jason opened the box and inside was a full set of shining gold battle armor.

"I know your armor got crushed by the Python. I brought a few more sets along just incase something like that happened," Leo said.

Jason pulled the armor out of the box, "It's awesome, Leo. Thanks."

Jason began strapping his new armor on, and it fit perfectly.

"Nice," Jason smiled.

"Check these out," Leo said as he opened another box.

Inside the box were six metal war helms, each made to match the color of their armor plating.

"They're just like Kota's," Jason noticed.

"Yep," Leo said as he pulled the gold helm from the box and handed it to Jason. "He and I forged them before we left. Pretty cool, huh?"

"Heck yeah, they are," Jason smiled as he put the helm on his head. "Do I look scary?"

"Oh, terrifying," Leo laughed as he pulled out a silver helm that matched his armor.

Left in the box were three bronze helms for Percy, Annabeth, and Reyna and a silver helm for Piper, and of course, Dakota already had his.

"I'm going to go take over for the girls so they can get ready," Leo said as he began to leave the cargo hold.

"Okay," Jason said still admiring his new armor.

Piper walked into the cargo hold and saw Jason, "Nice armor."

"Isn't it, though?" Jason smiled.

Piper grabbed her shining silver armor off a shelf and began putting it on. She was attempting to fasten a clasp on her shoulder pad, but she couldn't reach it.

"Hey Jason, could you help me out?" she asked.

"Sure," Jason said as he up walked behind her.

He gently moved her hair around her neck to her other shoulder then fastened the clasp.

"Could you get the other side, too?" she asked.

Jason again moved her hair which was giving off an intoxicating tropical aroma then fastened the other clasp.

She turned to him and said, "Thanks."

He blushed slightly, "Your welcome."

"What are these?" Piper asked as she looked into the box of helms.

"Oh, Leo and Kota made them for us," Jason said. "The silver one is yours."

Piper pulled the silver helm from the box and admired the beautiful craftsmanship. She ran her hand along the smooth crown then down the slightly curved nose and cheek guards.

"They're amazing," she smiled.

"Where'd you get that?" Reyna asked as she walked into the cargo hold and saw Piper holding the helm.

Piper pulled the shiniest bronze helm from the box, no doubt the one made for Reyna, and tossed it to her.

Reyna looked at it carefully then said, "It matches my armor. Did Leo make these?"

"Leo and Kota made them," Jason said.

Reyna nodded, "That explains why they look just like Kota's."

Reyna pulled her armor off a shelf. It shined like the sun; the bronze plating polished to a high gloss.

"I'm going to take Percy and Annabeth their helms. I think their stuff is in the armory," Piper said as she grabbed the two remaining helms from the box then left the cargo hold.

Reyna began strapping on her armor piece by piece.

"Reyna," Jason said, and she looked up at him.

Jason balled his right fist and put it to his heart, _"Audaces fortuna javat."_

Reyna returned the salute and said, _"Et nunc et simper."_

They were basically saying _fortune favors the brave now and forever_ in Latin.

Piper walked into the armory to see Percy already suited up and helping Annabeth with her armor.

"I come bearing gifts," Piper smiled as she sat the two helms down on the table.

"Oh, sweet," Percy said with excitement as he looked at the bronze helms.

Percy picked one of the helms up off the table, and Annabeth took it out of his hand, "That one's mine."

"How do you know?" Percy asked her.

"Because the other one is bigger."

"Are you saying I have a big head?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth smiled.

Piper just laughed at them then looked around the armory for Dakota, but he wasn't there.

"Have you two seen Dakota?" Piper asked.

"Yeah, he left a few minutes ago," Percy said. "He said something about needing to talk to Jason."

"Did you need him for something?" Annabeth asked Piper.

"I was just going to thank him for the helms," Piper said.

"Dakota made these?" Percy asked.

"He and Leo did," Piper answered.

"They did good," Annabeth smiled admiring her new bronze helm.

Dakota, who was already suited up, rifled through his pack sitting on his bunk in the sleeping quarters. He pulled out a small sheathed dagger and stuffed it into his combat boot, and then he pulled out a baseball cap which he tossed into the air. When it landed in his hand, it was no longer a cap; it was his silver and black war helm. He tucked the helm under his left arm then walked out of the sleeping quarters. When he stepped into the hallway, he saw Jason walking toward him.

"I see you got some new armor," Dakota said to Jason.

"Compliments of Leo," Jason said.

"Hey, um…can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure, what's on your mind?" Jason asked.

"You were like my brother…" Dakota started.

"I'm still like your brother," Jason corrected.

"But I haven't been much like yours since…" Dakota paused.

"Since Mount Tam," Jason said, and Dakota nodded.

"You took it hard, we all did. The deaths of fifty legion soldiers isn't something you get over quickly, especially for their commanding officers, and even more so for you because of your fatal flaw. Your protective instincts serve you well, Kota, but you can't save everyone no matter how hard you try. Your soldiers didn't die in vein, they died as war heroes," Jason said then smiled offering Dakota his right arm. "You'll always be my brother."

Dakota clasped Jason's forearm and said, _"Fraternitas aeternus."_

Leo was flying the Argo II over Greece when everyone made their way up onto the deck.

Annabeth peered down at the beautiful countryside and said to herself, "Not exactly how I imagined my first trip to Greece."

"Hey guys," Leo announced. "Ten minutes out."

Leo flew the ship toward the coordinates the Oracle had given him, and sure enough, tucked into a valley near a river basin in Thessaly was an expanse of land where there was no sunlight; the earth was dark over an area of about ten square miles. The only light in the expanse was coming from several blazing fires of all colors that burned randomly throughout Phlegra.

"The giants," Piper said remembering the towering purple bonfire from their encounter with Enceladus six months ago.

Leo flipped on the infrared scanners on the console, "It looks like the southwest corner will be the best spot for us to land. It's the furthest spot from any heat signatures."

It was quiet onboard for a moment then Jason broke the silence, "Take us in."

Leo maneuvered the Argo II toward the southwest corner of Phlegra using his instincts to guide him; running lights would've been too risky. Leo found a suitable spot to land, and he sat the Argo II down for a smooth landing. The sky was as dark as the middle of the night. There was no sun, no moon, and no stars, just blackness. Leo pressed a button on the console, and the ship's ramp began to lower. They were about to disembark the ship when they heard multiple footfalls on the ships ramp. They drew their weapons and looked at each other nervously, though they could barely see, wondering what exactly was making its way onboard the Argo II. The seven half-bloods stood side-by-side at mid ship in the pitch black clad in full battle armor with their weapons drawn listening to the footsteps approach them. The steps got louder and louder and when the sound finally ceased, they knew whomever or whatever that was now onboard was right in front of them. The flood light on the main mast suddenly illuminated, shining down onto the deck. The light was bright and it took a few seconds for their eyes to adjust, but when they finally did, the seven heroes found themselves standing face to face with seven gods.

**I want to thank all of the readers and reviewers for taking the time to read The Argonauts and for all of the wonderful reviews. The sequel to The Argonauts entitled The Gigantomachy will be posted soon. In The Gigantomachy, which will be the third story in this, my version of the Heroes of Olympus series, seven half-bloods will battle the giants alongside the gods while four other heroes wage a war of their own in the Underworld. I hope everyone who has read and followed The First Legion and The Argonauts will read The Gigantomachy. I did notice in some reviews that maybe there was some confusion about some of the characters and references made to the previous story. The Argonauts, as stated in the summary, is the sequel to The First Legion, which is written as the sequel to The Lost Hero (basically The First Legion is my version of The Son of Neptune.) To fully understand the characters and situations in The Argonauts, you should read The First Legion. (And I promise, if you liked The Argonauts, you'll like The First Legion.) Again, thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed it, and the sequel will be up soon!**

**Thanks again, dmac**

**Disclaimer: I do not own PJO or HO. I'm just a fan. **


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